In His Shoes
by Zero Assoluto 18
Summary: Yuuri and Wolfram spend time away from each other to figure out their relationship. Somewhere along the way their older brothers got involved. Are they a big help or a major hindrance to the budding romance? [YuuriWolfram, with lots of Shori and Conrart]
1. Chapter 1: Goodbyes

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram

Introductory Notes:

This is my first attempt at writing a multi-chaptered fanfic. This story is… well, a Yuuri and Wolfram love story. I know, I know… nothing new there. In fact, some of you must be thinking, "Do we need another one?" Well, I say, even if we don't need another Yuuri/Wolfram fic, I would still like to try to present yet another one because I'm writing it from a slightly different angle.

The so-called different angle that I have in mind is adding a side story about the dynamics between Yuuri and Wolfram and their older brothers, Shori and Conrart, to the main plot of developing Yuuri and Wolfram's relationship with each other. I think that there is, or there _should be_, a more in-depth story about how Yuuri and Wolfram feel about and interact with Shori and Conrart respectively. The matter of brotherly love /sibling rivalry that Yuuri goes through with Shori and Wolfram with Conrart, as shown in the series, has always fascinated me and made me want to write something about it. (And if you have read my previous works, you will know that my favorite character in KKM is actually Shori and I would like to give Shori another chance to appear as a main character in a fic. laugh) For this reason also I used the title "**_In His Shoes_**", like the Toni Collette and Cameron Diaz movie "_In Her Shoes_", which is also about siblings.

In any case, since this is multi-chaptered, I hope I won't quit halfway. So wish me luck and hopefully you will enjoy this story.

* * *

**Chapter I: Goodbyes**

_Which one is harder to do: saying goodbye or talking with Anissina?_

* * *

No one liked to be left behind. Especially by the person one loves and cares about. It made one feel like he was being abandoned. There was no feeling worse in this universe than the feeling of being abandoned. Even if in reality this was not the case, that the person leaving was not really abandoning him, it was still difficult to watch the back of the person one loved and cared about walking farther way out of the reach of his hands. It was also difficult saying goodbye with a smile in such occurrences because… to be honest, how could one smile and say goodbye when he does not even know when the person he loves and cares about would return? But perhaps the most difficult thing of all was for one to manage to overcome all those difficulties above and actually do them all and _then_ getting hit by the realization that… it was all for nothing.

That person he loved and cared about did not even glance his way when he said goodbye with a smile. Forget about expecting something like "goodbye, see you again soon" because when he mounted on that horse next to his guardian he only looked straight ahead of him and avoided any eye contact. His guardian was the one who said all the goodbyes and told everyone not to worry because they would be back in no time. He, on the other hand, had a steel glaze on his eyes as he ignored the whole world around him. Perhaps it had something to do with the destination of their journey and the dangers that lay ahead in it. Perhaps he did not sleep very well last night. Or perhaps it was simply stomachache. But one thing was for sure; that person never said goodbye. Not even in a whisper.

The whole world seemed oblivious to his plight. No one realized how much he hurt inside, seeing that person he loved and cared ride away without saying goodbye. They all sighed dejectedly for a minute or two but then they all perked up again and went about their own business as if nothing happened. Perhaps that person's mentor held on to his sadness longer than others did; he wailed for a few seconds longer but even he quickly got over it and started to excitedly immerse himself in the planning of that person's next lesson for when he returned. Yes, one was alone in his plight. He was all alone in the helplessness of feeling abandoned. No one could understand. No one _would_ understand. And he would go to hell first before his pride let anyone find out.

Thus, one tried his best to cope with looking at an empty chair next to him at mealtimes and sleeping alone in a big bed at night. One also tried his best to care for the daughter that one shared with that person without showing her a sad face. And one tried his best to carefully not show any emotion every time that person's name was mentioned. If one could, one would just stop loving and caring for that person because all of the above were hard to do. Sadly, one could not stop loving and caring that person because that was the way one's heart worked: it wanted to find and chase a happily ever after ending.

* * *

"Still moping, Wolfram?" Lady Anissina von Khrenikov, possibly the most intelligent and also the most insane being in Shin Makoku, asked one day.

Lord Wolfram von Bielefeld glanced up from his book, which was actually authored by said lady, and shot her a sharp gaze. "I am not moping."

"Sulking, then?" she offered.

"NO!"

The lady let out a disbelieving snort that somehow managed to sound quite elegant despite the mocking tone it produced. Anissina rounded the table where Wolfram was resting his arms upon and approached the boy she rather affectionately dubbed as Little Lord Brat. Wolfram followed her every move warily. One would be wise to do so because Anissina was known to extract the most brilliant and most dangerous inventions out of her pocket and stick it on any Mazoku within her sight. That 'honor' usually fell to his older half-brother Gwendal von Voltaire but he was not here. Wolfram was here. And here was Wolfram, doing what Gwendal had always warned him to do when Anissina was around: _Be Cautious_. _Prepare to Leave AT ONCE_.

Yet Anissina did not stick any inventions of any nature on Wolfram's face or head or any body part visible externally. What she did do, however, was smack the top of Wolfram's head with her fist. It was funny how such slender fingers could produce such a strong fist that gave his head a painful throb but Wolfram did not feel like laughing at the amusing fact. He yelped in annoyance.

"What did you do that?! Get away from me, woman!" he shouted.

Anissina did not budge. She tipped Wolfram's chin with her finger and made him look up. She stared into his green eyes and said, "You are moping and sulking and you know it. Ever since His Majesty left on that trip to Human Territory with Conrart you have been moping like a baby who lost his favorite toy. This is sad and pathetic. You are a noble and proud Mazoku. You are a _prince_. You are not supposed to mope."

Wolfram pushed Anissina's finger away from his beautiful chin. "I am not moping and do not touch me." Wolfram closed his book and tossed it on to the table. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have better things to do than stay here and listen to this nonsense."

Anissina laughed. The sound of her laughter came across as cynical to Wolfram. He narrowed his eyes on her. She placed her hands on her hips in a bold manner and said after her laughter subsided, "Denying that you are moping makes you look even more pathetic."

Had this place If only this place was not been filled with so many books containing ancient Shin Makoku texts and royal documents, Wolfram would have unleashed his fire and burn Anissina. But he would never do that. Not if he wanted to survive Gunter von Kleist's sword. Knowing this, Anissina laughed again. She was apparently amused at Wolfram's valiant attempt at restraining his anger. She was also apparently pleased by the flash of annoyance showing in Wolfram's green eyes. It looked more like the non-moping Wolfram; the Wolfram that she and everyone knew before the king's departure to Human Territory with Conrart Weller, the king's name-giver and Wolfram's other older half-brother. Anissina hoped that her boldness would continue to bring out the fire in Wolfram's eyes although she was still careful as to not bring out the _real_ fire that Wolfram could produce with his Maryoku.

"What are you smiling about?" Wolfram snapped.

"You, Wolfram. I'm smiling at you," Anissina said. "I am pleased that you're showing a little bit of your fierce nature." She paused. "We've missed that."

Wolfram said nothing. Anissina continued, "You might have thought no one noticed but I did, Wolfram. I know what it feels like to say goodbye to someone you care about and to not receive anything – not even a glance – in return."

At the look of surprise on Wolfram's face, Anissina chuckled. "What? You didn't think I would notice? May I remind you, boy, I am very smart and nothing escapes these brilliant, sharp eyes of mine! Well, actually, Gunter suspected something too. But I figured it out much faster than he did. You can forget about denying. I watched you when you said goodbye to His Majesty. Oh, the look on your face when he didn't even turn to acknowledge your goodbye! It was a surprise that you did not break into a million little pieces that time! I quite admire your strength!"

"Shut up," Wolfram hissed.

Waving her hand dismissively, she said again, "The point is, Wolfram, I know. I know what you're going through. And I hope you won't wallow in self-pity or sadness or anything like that because that is very unbecoming of a handsome – wait, I mean, _beautiful _young prince such as yourself."

"I do _not_ need any kind of advice from you, Anissina."

"On the contrary, Little Lord Brat, you would be wiser to take one from me! I have just the thing for you!" Anissina announced dramatically.

That was exactly what he was afraid of. Wolfram instinctively took a step back. Anissina laughed at his reaction as if knowing Wolfram's paranoia for her inventions. Once she finished laughing, she cocked her head to the side and regarded Wolfram even more amusedly than before.

"What do you find so appealing from His Majesty anyway?" Anissina shot straight to the heart of the matter. "If you like people with black hair and black eyes, the Sage is also available, you know?"

"It's not that!" Wolfram snapped.

"What is it then? Is it his strong Maryoku that attracts you to him? You've always admired people stronger than you, wishing you could be like them. Right?"

Wolfram wanted to lose his temper _now_. But Anissina spoke again before he could do anything. "If it is strong power that you seek in a partner, then might I suggest you to go to the courtyard below? I think you will find that there is someone as strong as Your Majesty downstairs who you would find just as physically appealing. He has black hair and black eyes too, just like His Majesty."

At that, Wolfram's head snapped up. He could not help himself as he asked, "Who?"

But Anissina's only answer was her escaping the library through the side door and vanished behind it. Wolfram growled. He wondered why communicating with Anissina was such a chore. Annoyed, he vowed not to follow Anissina's suggestion whatsoever. He was _not_ going to the courtyard to see just who this person was who was 'strong and physically appealing'. He was _not_ going to let Anissina influence him in any way. He would rather die first before he let that happen. With that resolve, Wolfram kicked his chair back and stalked away from the room, exiting it from the same door Anissina had gone through and went to sulk and mope somewhere else.

* * *

"I'm terribly sorry that he's not here when you arrived!" Gunter von Kleist apologized frantically as he tried to prepare a set of appropriate clothing from Conrart's closet for their newly arrived guest. "You see, he wasn't expecting you, of course. If he knew you were coming, he would be here! And it's such a great surprise to have you here! You usually only come here when he is…"

His voice trailing away, Gunter suddenly came to a very, very dreadful realization. If the guest was _here_, and he was usually here because the king was in trouble, then it meant…

"OH NO! YOUR MAJESTY! ARE YOU TROUBLE?!"

The guest could not help but be amused. He let out a chuckle that Gunter ignored because he had already begun questioning the king's safety. Gunter went on about wanting to write a letter via pigeon post to inquire about the king's well-being to his traveling companion, Conrart. Apparently the king's mentor had forgotten completely that just this morning at breakfast Gwendal had read them all a letter that Conrart had written to him that they were well and already approaching Cavalcade while the sun was warm and the sea breeze felt so refreshing and that His Majesty was having quite a nice time. (Gwendal had, of course, omitted the part where Conrart wrote that the reason why the king seemed to be having quite a nice time was because he was not in Shin Makoku, tortured under those history lessons that Gunter inflicted on him.) Gunter had forgotten all that and continued rambling until he forgot to prepare a set of suitable apparel for their guest.

At this point, the guest, who had already visited this bizarre kingdom several times for both serious and not-so-serious errands, understood that he was now completely on his own. He grabbed those clothes from the bed and quietly put them on. Conrart's clothing fit him perfectly because they had the same size. He also felt no guilt for borrowing Conrart's outfits without telling him first. After all, Conrart had done the same to him the last time he visited them. What was a shirt or two among friends?

His visit here turned out to be completely useless. He wondered when would be a good time to come back to his own place. He had come here with one sole mission to drag the king of this so-called Great Demon Kingdom back home to help him with something and now that mission was rendered futile because the king was not here. He had a deadline to catch and he was running out of time. He should just go back to where he belonged as soon as possible.

But it would be terribly rude of him to just hop back into the portal that took him here. After all the effort he made to ensure that he could come here to see the king, it bothered him to no end that he was going to go back empty-handed. So perhaps he should just stay for one day or two and see everyone here. Not everyone here was a complete stranger to him, after all. In fact he actually had a relative living here.

"Gunter!" he called out to stop Gunter's frantic rambling. Gunter stopped long enough to pay attention to his question. He asked, "Where's Greta?"

At the mention of Greta's name, Gunter started to lose it again. "Oh, poor child! Poor, poor child! What should I tell her?! That His Majesty had probably perished in fire or lost at sea!"

This was enough to send him running away from the room to find Greta on his own. For the life of him, the guest could not understand how on earth the king could stand living here with Gunter. He would go crazy within minutes of being in the same room!

Of course, just because Gunter was a bit weird it did not mean that the guest would not appreciate guidance from him about directions in this castle. He had arrived at the staircase leading downstairs to… well, God knows where. And he did not know where to proceed. Where _was_ he supposed to go from here to find Greta? He swore; this place could never fail to confuse him!

Just when he was about to step down, someone suddenly appeared at the bottom of the staircase. He was about to ascend. But he did not. He stood in his place, surprised and transfixed, while the guest regarded him with the same look, only milder. After a few long minutes of remaining in the same position, it was finally time to acknowledge each other.

"Wolfram."

"Shori."

A pause.

"What are you doing here?" Wolfram finally asked.

"Visiting my brother," Shori answered.

"He's not here," Wolfram replied. He hoped his voice did not sound too spiteful when he said that.

"Do you have any idea how I can reach him?" Shori asked.

Pain flashed in his eyes at that question. He looked away before turning around completely. His parting words to the king's brother were, "How should I know? He didn't even say goodbye to me."

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	2. Chapter 2: Annoyance

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram

Notes: This chapter has more shape than the previous. I hope. Thanks to those who put this fic on alert and those who placed a comment in chapter 1. I was quite encouraged. Please bear further with my attempts at a multi-chaptered fic. I will update the chapter as soon as I can.

* * *

**Chapter II: Annoyance**

_Because that's what brothers are_

* * *

He was not proud of himself. He was not ashamed to declare that to himself the moment he boarded this ship that was taking him and his name-giver to Human Territory by sea. In fact, he added as an afterthought, he, Yuuri Shibuya, the _great_ Demon King of the _great_ Demon Kingdom, Shin Makoku, was downright stupid, cowardly and wimpy. Those accusations a certain blonde prince made about his character were, as it turned out, very true. 

His name-giver, the man he looked up to as a combination of idol, role model and godfather, knew the emotions flaring inside his heart at the moment but did and said nothing to condemn him. The king wished he did not mollycoddle him sometimes but the gentle, comforting smiles and warm pats on his shoulder he gave were like a drug. They made him feel good and comfortable and it was so hard to let go of the comfort. His reaction to the king's actions was an understanding smile. His eyes were a little bit sad but his smile was one of understanding nonetheless.

"How many more days is it until we arrive in Cavalcade?" he asked his travel companion in order to avoid awkward silences.

Conrart Weller looked up from the map he was holding and said apologetically, "Three more days. I'm so sorry we can't go straight to Cavalcade but that stopover in Malvesia was inevitable. If the mayor of Malvesia was not a cousin of the king of Cavalcade, and if Mr. Heathcliff and Gwendal hadn't already arranged for us to meet him, we would be able to proceed faster."

Yuuri smiled. "Oh, that's all right. No problem! That visit to Malvesia was much needed. Now we can start importing the famous Malvesian wine that Lady Celi loves so much. I'm just glad Gwendal is allowing me negotiate the trade agreements on my own now. Do you think he's starting to trust me as a king?"

Conrart nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty– I mean, Yuuri. He has." He paused then but his face showed that he might still have another statement to make. Yuuri waited for him to speak. But a few minutes passed and Conrart did not say anything. Instead he smiled again and looked away.

"What's the matter?" Yuuri asked. "You look like you have more to say."

"Do I?" he replied, laughter in his voice. "I actually don't. Not really."

Yuuri raised his eyebrows. "Really? Are you sure? Look, Conrad, if you have something to say, you just say it. Is something bothering you?"

Conrart hesitated but Yuuri's black eyes were too big, too curious and too pleadingly so that he could not help but want to tell Yuuri what was on his mind. He said, "I guess… I just wish we could travel with… Wolfram."

At the mention of his younger half-brother's name, the king's expression turned steely. He turned around and gave Conrart his back. The soldier knew he had touched a sensitive issue when he saw the king's reaction but he could not help but say it. Of course traveling alone with Yuuri with a smaller entourage than usual meant that he got to spend more time with the king; perhaps even in a more intimate manner than usual because now there were less people around them. But at the same time he could also not deny that his heart wished that Wolfram could travel with them. They had made so many trips together in the past and it was quite strange not having him with them this time.

There was nothing he could do about this, of course. The king made it clear that he did not want the blonde prince to join them. He had rejected the prince's company in an agonizingly brutal way. Other than not mentioning his travel plans to Wolfram until the last minute, when he did, he had even told Wolfram that he especially wanted to travel _alone_ with Conrart, the one person in this universe who could make Wolfram green with envy. The final blow was to not acknowledge Wolfram's goodbye at all at departure. Thanks to this, whatever intentions Wolfram had of sneaking aboard the ship to join and follow them had been squashed before the idea even materialized in his mind.

Both Conrart and Yuuri knew how cruel his action was so it was little wonder that Yuuri felt disgusted with himself earlier. Even now, the self-loathing would not go away and he was pretty sure it would plague him for the rest of the journey. Yuuri inwardly argued that there was actually a very good reason why he did what he did and said what he said. But he was too stupid, cowardly and wimpy to reveal it and admit it to anyone, even to himself. And so he had chosen to ignore Wolfram and gave no explanation whatsoever.

Conrart wondered if he should pursue the matter. But one look at Yuuri's cold back and he decided that it was best to let the sleeping dogs lie… _for now_. When there was another chance, he would probably ask again. Right now, however, all he needed to do was make sure that the young king was out of harm's way. Guilt or no guilt and curiosity aside, this was the reason why he had to go along with Yuuri.

"Yuuri," Conrart called.

"Yes?" Yuuri replied.

"I'm going to see the captain to speak with him. I'll see you later."

Yuuri forced smiled and a cheerful reply. "Roger that!"

* * *

Dinner was a dreaded affair that evening. The castle was deprived of its main residents at the moment, with the king gone on a trip with the captain of the Royal Guard, and his predecessor gone too on a luxury holiday trip. The chief of military and state affairs had been called up back to his ancestral home to settle a dispute between two of his older relatives. The light-haired mentor who had been grieving over his majesty's safety earlier this morning had been sedated by his physician/daughter and was now resting in said physician/daughter's place… just in case he lost it again. So now the only ones left at the castle other than the guards and household staffs were the king's daughter, the king's abandoned fiancé, the king's older brother and Anissina. 

When he heard that Anissina was going to join him and their guest for dinner, Wolfram resisted the urge to run away to Gwendal and hide from Anissina behind his older brother's back. The only thing that was preventing him to run away like a coward was his pride. Besides, there were good manners to consider. As much as he preferred his privacy right now, he was too proud a Mazoku of nobility to let bad manners getting in the way. That and Gunter. Gunter would probably spank him if he knew that Wolfram, the only one in the castle who could entertain their guest, neglected his duties.

Anissina somehow knew that Wolfram was agitated at the situation but had no choice than to grin and bear it and she was very, very amused. The moment she entered the dining room and found him sitting awkwardly across Shori Shibuya at the table in silence, she felt like rolling on the floor and laughing out loud. But she could not bring herself to do it. It was bad enough that the boy was feeling helplessly abandoned. She did not think it was weird to rub more salt to a wide open wound by making fun of him.

"Good evening, gentleman," Anissina greeted.

"Lady Anissina," Shori acknowledged. He rose from his seat and went over to pull a chair for Anissina. Anissina thanked him for seating her.

The appetizer was served. Anissina looked to her left at Wolfram and to her right at Shori. Neither was inclined to start a conversation. Anissina sighed quietly. Apparently, it was up to her to break this ice.

"Shori, it's really nice to have you here," Anissina started. "I'm just sorry that no one is around at this moment. Your day must have been quite boring."

Shori politely shook his head. "I spent some time with Greta."

Anissina smiled. "So I've heard. Greta can't stop talking about her Uncle Shori."

Shori blushed at the word 'uncle'. He cleared his throat and said, "She showed me her sketches." Turning to Wolfram, he said, "Wolfram had been teaching her how to sketch."

"Excellent! Sketching is a useful hobby for an inventor to start. It helps with the design of an invention," Anissina said with a nod of approval to Wolfram. As the king's daughter's self-appointed mentor, she always encouraged the little girl to start as many useful hobbies as possible.

"Thank you for your approval," Wolfram muttered sarcastically to his soup.

Anissina heard the snide remark and decided to retaliate. Turning to Shori, she said loudly, "You know what, Shori, I know that you said you only plan to be here until tomorrow morning but I think you should stay for a few days more to keep Greta company. Wolfram has been nothing but sulky in these past few days because Yuuri is gone. And, quite frankly, I don't think all that sulkiness is doing Greta any good."

If looks could kill, Anissina would have been dead. Annihilated. Turned to ash. Shori arched his eyebrows and turned to Wolfram. He replied Anissina while staring at Wolfram, "Indeed, I have noticed." And now Shori would probably join Anissina in ash form.

His patience snapped. Good manners or no, Wolfram knew he could not stay there for a minute longer because he was very close to burning his dining companions alive. Glaring at the both of them, Wolfram threw his spoon down and got up from the table with a bang. He pushed his chair back and walked towards the door. The maid attending to the dinner jumped out of his way as he opened the door, exited and slammed it to a close.

Anissina and Shori shared a look. After a few seconds, Shori asked, "I knew he was a temperamental brat but I've never seen him that angry unless there was an enemy in front of him. What exactly is wrong with him?"

Anissina shrugged. "What else? Let's see if I can put it simply and correctly for you. First, your brother decided to go on a trip without him. Then, your brother said that he wanted to go alone with Wolfram's brother and therefore making Wolfram green with envy. Finally, when your brother was about to leave, he didn't acknowledge Wolfram's goodbye. He just… left."

Shori's defense of his brother was automatic. "It's unlike Yuuri to be that cruel."

"Perhaps His Majesty had a stomachache at that time," Anissina suggested.

"That still doesn't sound like Yuuri," Shori replied. He started to furrow his eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes. "Well, try explaining that to the person he left behind."

Shori sat there, assessing Anissina's words, while toying with the contents of his bowl. Not long after that, he looked up to the beautiful redhead Mazoku. Anissina met his eyes and inquired quietly through her gaze what Shori wanted to say.

His reply was not long in coming. "I think I will try to explain that to the person he left behind. I hope you don't mind dining alone."

Anissina nodded. She understood. "That's great. That would help us a lot. I definitely don't mind dining alone. More food for me!"

And so, Shori left to have a little talk with Conrart's little brother.

* * *

Philippe was the proudest of them all. In terms of size, he was even smaller than his next-door-neighbor, the dark Ao, and his next-door-neighbor was already considered small among them. Those who did not know probably thought that they were already gigantic but compared to their mates, they were easily the smallest. Unlike Ao who had a gentle nature, however, Philippe was haughty and refused to let anyone near him. In fact, the only other being he would ever allow near him was Ao. If it was not Ao, then it was no one. His stubborn single-mindedness often caused trouble for those who cared for him. His owner, on the other hand, was quite proud of that fact. After all, Philippe resembled Wolfram so much that he might as well be his clone. 

"Hey, Philippe," Wolfram greeted his loyal steed. Philippe approached Wolfram and nuzzled Wolfram's neck, asking for a pat and a treat. He only received the pat. There was no treat. Philippe stomped his foreleg to indicate his disappointment.

"Sorry but even I didn't even get to dessert," Wolfram replied. He continued stroking Philippe's glistening coat. He checked Philippe's grooming for a moment and was pleased to find that Dacascos had groomed him well.

"You look good as always," Wolfram said to the horse. Philippe seemed to understand. He nuzzled Wolfram's palm.

Turning to the horse housed next to Philippe's stall, he greeted Ao. "Hey, there. Miss your rider? Well, you should. He's going to go away for a long time. You're stuck here in this place like the rest of us. Not too fun, huh? Did he say goodbye to you? No? Well, I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't. He has always been that insensitive."

Ao gave Wolfram a sad look. Wolfram tried to resist the urge to pat the king's horse but failed. Just because Ao was owned by the king it did not mean it _was_ the king. He might be dark like the king but he was much nicer than the king, Wolfram decided. So he reached over and patted Ao's head.

"Wolfram!"

Surprised, Wolfram took a step back. He lost his footing and fell down on his derriere on a stack of hay. Shori appeared in front of him, looming above him as he stared amusedly at Wolfram's position. Wolfram thought he was smiling but it was dark and he could not really see Shori's face properly.

Shori offered his hand to help Wolfram get up. Wolfram regarded Shori's hand apprehensively. It took him a very long time to contemplate whether or not to take Shori's hand. In the end, Shori lost his patience and grabbed Wolfram's hand to pull him back up in a single yank.

When Wolfram said nothing, Shori felt it in him to correct his manners. "Usually when someone offers you a hand, you take it. And then you thank him."

Wolfram flushed. Shori's tone was stern and authoritative. It reminded him of something or someone that he could not put his finger onto. It was maddening. But he had been chastised for displaying bad manners. It embarrassed him. Nonetheless, Wolfram liked to think he was a good sport. So he apologized.

"Sorry. And thank you for helping me get up," Wolfram said.

"Now, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Shori replied.

"No, it wasn't," Wolfram retorted. He shook his head. "What do you want? I came here to be alone. Do you need help with something?" He paused as if realizing something. The look that showed on his face next surprised Shori. He looked somewhat… uncertain?

Well, that was definitely new for Shori. The Wolfram he knew was always confident and straightforward. He never expected to see an uncertain side of Wolfram for as long as they both lived. Wolfram then continued, "My brother… well, neither of my brothers is here. If you need help, they're probably more qualified than I am to help you. I… don't know if I can help you much. As you can see, I had not been chosen to accompany the king on his journey, nor have I been called to my home in Von Bielefeld territory to settle a dispute. So… if you do need help, keep it simple."

It took all the discipline that Shori had not to drop his jaws in shock. Wolfram was actually acting like a… lost child? No, that could not be right. Shori shook his head, only to stop himself before he let his amusement and amazement show in front of the proud Wolfram, thus embarrassing him further. But Wolfram's admission of not being able to be much of a help was definitely shocking. Indeed.

Where on Earth – or Shin Makoku – did Wolfram get the idea that he could not possibly help Shori? It was true that he and Wolfram did not interact much in the past. They had only exchanged a few short conversations in the history of their acquaintance. Shori never sought Wolfram to purposefully engage him in a private conversation before and found it much easier to talk to Conrart, Gwendal and even Gunter he looked up to both those men as his mentors and friends with the same maturity level as his. Besides, Wolfram was usually so focused on Yuuri that he practically ignored everyone else when they were together.

That did not mean, however, that Wolfram was useless. Shori knew for a fact – he had heard everything from Ken Murata and managed to deduce it from Yuuri's subconsciously constant rambling of Wolfram whenever he was back on Earth – that Wolfram was a capable and competent Mazoku. Perhaps Wolfram was not the most intelligent or the strongest among Lady Cecilie's offspring but he was definitely the most loyal and eager.

Suddenly Shori felt annoyed. The feeling just popped out of nowhere. He was annoyed that Wolfram did not seem to realize his worth. And he was probably annoyed that no one ever reassured him otherwise. And he was somehow annoyed, too, that even his own brother did not do anything for this young man who was supposedly his fiancé. It annoyed Shori to no end. And it annoyed him even more that he did not know why he felt so annoyed for Wolfram.

"Yes, you can help," Shori said with finality after a while.

Wolfram's head snapped up. His eyes widened for a moment before he narrowed it again to regard Shori inquisitively. "How could I be of service to you?"

"Come with me to Earth," Shori blurted out.

Wolfram did not bother containing his shock the way Shori did earlier. "WHAT?!"

Shori stared at him levelly. "I need your help. I was hoping to ask Yuuri for a huge favor but seeing that he's not around… I can only ask you for this favor."

"And the favor is going to Earth?" Wolfram asked suspiciously.

Shori nodded. "A part of it, yes," he answered. "But there's more to it. I can't explain it to you until I show you."

Wolfram did not speak for a whole minute. Shori sighed impatiently. "Look, if you can't help me…"

"Do you realize that your request is highly unusual?" Wolfram asked. This time he did not sound cynical or angry. He only sounded amazed.

"I don't know, actually," Shori answered frankly after he gave it a moment's thought. "Has… has… no one ever asked you something like this before?"

"Yuuri never asked me to come," Wolfram said. His tone was flat but Shori detected exasperation in his voice. "I always volunteered to follow him whenever he said he was going back to Earth."

Shori made up his mind then. Mentally cursing his brother's endless insensitivity, Shori grabbed Wolfram by his arms and squeezed them tight. Wolfram was about to protest at Shori's rude treatment of his arms when Shori suddenly bowed his head and pleaded, "Please. I beg you. Come with me. I need you to come. I swear it won't be more than a few days!" But he added under his breath, "If all goes well."

Wolfram was surprised – and perhaps a little scared – at Shori's intensity. But now he did not think that Shori was joking. Yuuri's older brother never really told them his reason for coming to visit. He said he wanted to see Yuuri and ask him for a favor. Whatever it was, if Shori was willing to take just about anyone to come to Earth and help him with it, it could only mean that this thing was serious. And if it was serious, Wolfram _had to_ help. Shori was, after all, the brother of his fiancé and his king.

He did a quick calculation in his mind. If he transported himself to Earth with Shori and left Shin Makoku for a few days, in his rough estimation, he would be away for at least four weeks in Shin Makoku time. Yuuri was gone for who knew how long. Gwendal would not be back until two more weeks. Someone had to take care of Greta and that someone would _not_ be Anissina. Then again, Anissina would never harm a hair on Greta's head and she had done this 'babysitting' job many times before. If they were all lucky, Gisela would have managed to calm Gunter and by tomorrow morning Gunter would already be his usual efficient self again. Gunter and Gisela would probably be able to help with the babysitting as well. As for his duties, training the staff could be handled by Gunter. Let the trainees learn from the best mentor in Shin Makoku.

Satisfied with the arrangements, he finally said to Shori, "All right."

Shori blinked. "Really?"

"Yes," Wolfram answered. "You seem to need this favor a lot. Since I have nothing important to do around here that cannot be handled by anyone else, I'll help you."

Shori was glad. He felt like jumping around and hugging Wolfram but that would probably cause Wolfram to retract his offer. So all he did was clear his throat and step back, finally releasing Wolfram's arms from his clutches. Wolfram smoothed his sleeves and turned around to leave.

"When do we leave?" he asked before he exited the stables.

"As soon as possible," Shori answered.

"I'll meet you back here in two hours. I'm going to say goodbye to my daughter first."

* * *

"Anissina!" Greta called out as she entered Gwendal's study where Anissina was writing the daily report Gwendal made her do in his absence. 

"Greta, aren't you supposed to be in bed?" Anissina replied sternly. But she was not immune to the king's daughter. She let Greta approach the table and hang on to her arms. The princess was all smiles.

"Wolfram said I could say goodbye to him," Greta replied. "So I got up from bed, went to the stables with him and Doria, said goodbye and returned here with Doria."

Anissina's quill stopped midway. Turning sharply to the little girl, Anissina inquired coolly, "What did you say about Wolfram?"

"Wolfram is going away for a while," Greta announced importantly. "He said that he would try to get back as soon as possible. He also told me to behave and follow your, Gunter's and Gisela's orders until Gwendal comes back. Of course, when he comes back, I'll follow his orders again."

"And where, pray tell, is Wolfram going away?" Anissina asked.

Greta's reply was cheerful and excited. "To Earth! And he said he is going to bring me plenty of souvenirs! He promised!"

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	3. Chapter 3: Oddities

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram

Notes: I just want you to know that the fact that I am updating 2 chapters in a very short span of time does not make me a fast or prolific writer. It just so happens that this chapter was already almost done when the last chapter was updated. I hope this chapter gives you better insight on the story. Probably many of you are wondering where I am going with it. All will be revealed in due time. I just need you to, once again I plead, bear with me. Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter III: Oddities  
**_They all love a good mystery_

* * *

Recently the number of knitted stuffed animals in Gwendal's room had doubled. Not that anyone was counting but when three donkeys resembling monkeys and five lions resembling dogs had made their way into Gwendal's cabinet in his office, Gunter knew that Gwendal had run out of space in his room to store these rainbow-colored animals. And the addition of these semi-deformed but cute animals in Gwendal's collection could only mean one thing: he was under a lot of stress. 

And no wonder. Within an hour of returning from his ancestral home to settle that dispute among his Von Voltaire relatives, he was welcomed with the happy-but-shocking news that Wolfram was no longer sulking about the castle because he had gone on a trip to Earth with the king's older brother. Upon hearing that, he did not seem to know whether he was supposed to hug Greta and thank her for telling him the news or choke the little girl and her mentor/babysitter for it. In the end, after Gunter calmed him down, he settled for the first and started to pick up his knitting kit. He knitted for the better part of the afternoon, all documents neglected.

After he had finished his latest donkey/monkey, he summoned Anissina to his office. Anissina appeared within moments. Her speed was both amazing and alarming.

"I suppose you called me here to ask about Wolfram," Anissina said as she entered the room. Gunter closed the door behind her.

"Why did you let Shori take him away?" Gwendal practically roared.

"He didn't take him away. He was definitely not forced. At least, that's what Greta said," Anissina said.

A muscle in Gwendal's temple started to twitch. "Are you telling me that Wolfram did not even tell you that he left and he only told Greta about it?"

"You know, I always knew you were smart," Anissina replied with a satisfied smile.

Gwendal groaned. "I don't believe this!" Glaring at Gunter, he asked, "And where were _you_ when all this happened?!"

Gunter smiled guiltily but managed to choke out his response, "I was at Gisela's infirmary. She was nursing me back to health. Ah… I had an episode that morning… You see, I thought Shori came here because His Majesty was in trouble. No, Gwendal, don't look at me that way. You know very well that Shori only comes here when King Yuuri is in trouble! I had every right to assume the worst about His Majesty!"

Anissina shook her head exasperatedly. "Don't bully Gunter. It's not his fault that Wolfram left the castle. Why are you so annoyed anyway? You were the one who said that his sulking was starting to get on your nerves. You said that you would like him to have more spine and stop acting like a sissy, moping about the fiancé that did not care for him. At least now Wolfram is not sulking anymore!"

Her childhood friend rose for his seat, slammed the table in the process and barked, "He's not sulking anymore because none of us can see us sulking! But I do not recall giving him permission to go to Earth unattended."

Anissina did not flinch. She merely raised her eyebrows and replied, "He is not unattended. Shori is with him. And Wolfram is an adult. He can make his own decisions. He does not need anyone's permission to go anywhere on his own. And if you can just look at it from the bright side, Gwendal, we should all be glad that Shori appeared on our doorstep and took Wolfram and his sulkiness away with him."

Pleased with her own argument, Anissina placed her hands on her hips and concluded brightly, "Besides, if His Majesty goes on a journey with Wolfram's brother, it's only fair that Wolfram goes on a journey with His Majesty's brother. Don't you think?"

Without waiting for Gwendal to reply, Anissina walked away. Or rather, she _skipped_ away. Gunter reopened the door to let her out. After Anissina was gone, Gunter closed the door again. When he turned around, there were already two more donkey/monkeys. He sighed. Gwendal had it bad. Really, _really _bad.

* * *

Strictly speaking, He was not supposed to be drinking wine. Not on Earth, not in Shin Makoku. He was, after all, underage. But the Human Territory, he learned to his surprise, and Cavalcade in particular, allowed people under 20 yeas of age to drink alcohol. It was one of those customs that the Demon tribe rather detested, as a certain blonde prince once said, because it was rather immoral. Personally, the king agreed. But after shaking hands with so many people and twirling around with so many women (most of them old ladies) in a dance, he was feeling extremely parched. He did not care what he drank; he merely grabbed the glass nearest to him – it just so happened to be wine – and drained the contents. 

Luckily, he was not to get carried way because his chaperone was there to quickly put a stop to what promised to be a drinking binge. Conrart arrived beside Yuuri just as Yuuri was about to grab another glass of wine. He arrived with not one but two glasses of fresh lemonade to relieve his king's thirst. Yuuri thanked him profusely and downed the lemonade in just three gulps. If a certain blonde prince was around, he would probably be chastised for drinking in a 'barbaric manner'.

"How are you holding up, Your Majesty?" Conrart asked.

"Conrart, didn't I tell you to use my name?" Yuuri frowned.

"But, Your Majesty, we agreed to use your title instead because we're at an official function," Conrart answered.

That was when Yuuri remembered. He _was_ at an official function. To be precise, he was at a party thrown by the King of Cavalcade in his honor. The human king had gone out of his way to show his hospitality for the Demon King by throwing a lavish party in his honor and inviting all the important royals and nobles in the country to attend. It was a generous act but, as the Demon King fully realized, the reason behind it was not so innocent. It was to send a message to Cavalcade enemies that it was allied to the powerful Demon King and his kingdom so the enemies better watch their step. Yuuri was fully aware of this (how could he not be? Gwendal and Gunter practically drilled this fact into his brain every single day prior to his departure.) Yet, he did not mind. If this was for the good of his allies, it was also for the good of his kingdom. After all, Shin Makoku could not stand on its own without its allies.

But if only the function did not have to be so… so… _formal_. He looked helplessly around the room. Everyone was royalty and nobility and _old_. They were all dressed impeccably. The men wore wigs that covered their shiny bald heads and the ladies, though not bald, wore them as well. All for the sake of their way of greeting guests. Most of them were also older than him. The only one younger than him in this room was the king's grandson, a boy who was only 12. But he was only present at the first part of the party. Then he disappeared to play with Beatrice, Mr. Heatchliff's daughter.

"How dancing with someone?" Conrart offered. "I could introduce you to some–"

Yuuri quickly shook his head. "No, no, no! I don't want to dance anymore. I've had enough of that. Besides, I _can't _dance."

Conrart laughed. "Yes, you can. Why, you danced beautifully at the last party my mother held in Von Spitzberg castle! You and Wolfram practically owned the floor, Your Majesty!"

At the mention of Wolfram's name, Yuuri frowned. Conrart immediately realized his mistake. He should have known better; Wolfram was a sensitive topic for Yuuri these days. Though, for the life of him, Conrart did not know why Yuuri was so bothered with the idea of Wolfram.

Come to think of it, all of this started several weeks ago. It started right after that party the previous Demon Queen, his mother, Lady Cecilie von Spitzberg, held in her ancestral home to celebrate her birthday (though she would not tell how old she was). Conrart remembered it just like yesterday. He had been away from Shin Makoku with Yozak under Gwendal's orders to investigate a military-related case at one of the borders, which they solved successfully, and when they came back, the first thing he noticed was how unusually happy Wolfram had been.

And why shouldn't he be happy? As Conrart discovered later by talking to many people, while he had been away on his trip, his younger brother had grown very close to the king. Their young king was known for his wanderlust. During Conrart's absence, His Majesty had decided to tour the whole kingdom, visit the Ten Aristocrats' territory and meet all of them. The trip, Conrart heard, was a success… except during that visit to the Von Bielefeld land.

The king's timing could not have been worse. He and his entourage arrived in the middle of a duel – the issue was trivial, really, just a matter of a few gold coins from a card game that two men who shared Wolfram's family name were arguing over – and, knowing the king, he decided to meddle. Recklessly, that is. In the end he nearly got his neck broken and his chest bloodied by a sword. His only saving grace was none other than the blonde Von Bielefeld who was currently listed in his service as head of royal guard (in place of Conrart), best friend, fiancé and (truly platonic) bed partner.

Wolfram had not only knocked the king aside to avoid the blade but he also punched the lights out of his older cousin (once removed) for the next two days and scared the hell out of the other culprit's (a second cousin once removed) who started all the ruckus by cleanly burning all his clothes to punish him for his misdemeanor. Thus, Wolfram was lauded as the real hero among the Von Bielefeld nobles. And, of course, in the eyes of the king whose life he saved.

The king had said that he owed his life to Wolfram. Wolfram had agreed and replied that the debt must be paid and it could only be paid in one way. The king thought that Wolfram would demand a wedding. Immediately. But as it turned out, Wolfram only wanted a dance. He wanted the king to dance with him at the next party they attended. The king was only too happy to comply. (After all, a dance was a little less scary than a wedding.) And thus, Conrart was then witness to that one dance in which the king and Wolfram danced wonderfully with each other.

And then… just when everyone thought they could be optimistic about the royal couple… the king suddenly started distancing himself from Wolfram. Conrart did not know how to explain how he noticed this but he just knew that it was happening. In the end, the king suddenly decided to go on a journey. Alone. Knowing that his advisors were not going to agree, before Gwendal and Gunter could protest, Yuuri compromised early on. He was going to take one companion and only one. That companion was Conrart. No one else could come.

Conrart was not surprised that he was invited – _appointed_ – on this journey. After all, he _was_ the most capable soldier that could guard His Majesty. But he _was_ surprised that Wolfram was excluded. After his heroics at Von Bielefeld territory, he had thought that Wolfram would at least be asked to come along. If one could do a good job at protecting His Majesty, then _two_ would do a better job. Conrart was expecting the king to allow him to take a partner and he had Wolfram in mind for his partner. The king, however, would not allow that to happen.

"I don't want him to come, Conrad," the king had insisted, half whining. "Only you may come along. It's either that or I go alone."

So it had come to this. The king had not wanted to hear the name 'Wolfram'. Once again, for the life of him, he did not understand why. And he was a little bit annoyed. Annoyed that His Majesty was not being considerate of Wolfram's feelings. Annoyed that His Majesty did not explain his reason for not wanting to have Wolfram near him. Annoyed that he had to guard everything he said as to not let slip the name 'Wolfram'. In the end, he was annoyed that he could not do anything about it.

Or perhaps he could. Conrart flicked his gaze toward the king. Yuuri was still frowning. And suddenly Conrart felt the urge to meddle himself. Yes, he was going to meddle. He was going to get to the bottom of this. He would find out Yuuri's change of heart and, by God, he was going to do something about it.

"Your Majesty," Conrart started. Yuuri looked up to him once again. "I know you don't feel like dancing again but I see the king's niece Lady Eleanor alone. You would make the king very happy if you could dance with her _and_ Gwendal would very much approve if you dance with her."

"Really?" Yuuri asked.

"Yes, indeed," Conrart confirmed. "He would commend you for dancing with one of Cavalcade's gems. It can only strengthen the bond between our countries."

Yuuri contemplated the matter for a while. He hated to dance again but if it meant he could prove himself to Gwendal he was going to do it at all cost. He finally nodded and smiled to Conrart. "All right! Show me the way, Conrart! Where is she?"

"She's just right over there," Conrart said, motioning toward a lovely lady in a rich emerald-colored dress who was bringing a glass of wine demurely to her lips. "She's beautiful, isn't she?"

_She should be beautiful enough for you_, Conrart thought. Even though she was 5 years older than Yuuri, Lady Eleanor had a young face, a fair complexion, blonde hair and green eyes. Conrart's younger brother had the same features. In fact, Lady Eleanor was practically Wolfram in a dress. If the Majesty refused this beauty, then hope was officially dead.

* * *

The crazy inventor lady was right, although he did not know that she was right. _This_ was probably the best form of retaliation. The moment he stepped out of the freezing lake that was surrounded by beautiful mountains (by now he knew what those mountains were called; they were called the Alps), he knew that he was getting his revenge on the one who abandoned him. So that person had left him behind to go on a journey with his older half-brother. And now he too had left that person behind in the world where he was still in to go on a trans-dimensional journey! What more, he was on this journey with that person's older brother! 

Revenge was sweet indeed.

_Achoo_. But the cold was unbearable.

He sneezed three more times consecutively. That person's older brother tossed him a thick and dry towel. "Use that," the bespectacled man said as he dried his own dark hair with a similar towel.

"While you're at it, let's go inside my office," he said again before he started leading the way the office, striding at a pace that could only be called 'swifter than arrow', forcing the wet blonde behind him to curse as he tripped on his toes trying to follow him.

'His office' turned out to be a small space with a solitary desk with a window facing the lake that they had just stepped out of and a rotating leather chair behind said desk that one could turn around on to look at the magnificent view of the mountains. In front of the desk were two stationary chairs. The room had no other furniture than these and two sets of cabinets that stood against one side of the wall. A small number of books and file binders were lined up on them. The bare room was without decoration and it did not even seem like it was occupied very often.

Glancing curiously around the room, Wolfram asked, "Is this your office?"

Shori nodded. "This is the room they let me use when I'm here in Switzerland. It's small but at least I don't have to share this with anyone. In Tokyo I have to share an office with Bob's other assistants."

The name gave Wolfram's stomach a twist. Wolfram would never admit it but something about Bob, the leader and king of the Demon race on Earth, always made him feel uneasy. It was probably just the fact that he and his brothers received an unusual treatment from Bob when they came to Earth for the first time to look for the Forbidden Boxes but Wolfram knew just how powerful Bob was and because of that he chose to always be on his guard at all times… even when only his name was mentioned and the man himself was not there.

But his curiosity overcame his apprehension and he asked, "So you are really working for Bob now?"

Shori nodded. "I only just started a few months ago. I don't work for him full-time yet because I'm still trying to complete my thesis. But I've already been given real assignments to do."

Wolfram did not know what a thesis was but he figured that it must be something time-consuming if Shori was not working for Bob full-time because of it. "Is Bob here?" he asked after he finished drying his fine blonde hair.

"No," Shori answered tautly. After a moment's pause, he elaborated, "He has left for New York yesterday. The next time I'm going to see him is next week in Tokyo. I'm about to fly home to Japan, too. We leave in a few hours."

Casting a somewhat apologetic glance at Wolfram, Shori explained, "I'm sorry if it seems that I'm dragging you around like this. But, the truth is, I'm not even supposed to be here anymore right now. I'm supposed to be already halfway through on my flight home to Japan. The only reason why I delayed my flight and am still here right now is because I needed to go and see Yuuri in your world."

Wolfram was surprised and he was now even more convinced that Shori was seriously in need of help if he risked his precious time to go to Shin Makoku through the Portal. Wolfram wondered whether he should be worried as well. He had the impression that whatever favor Shori was asking him was not something to be taken lightly. But for the life of him, he still could not figure out what it was that Shori wanted from him.

"Here, I prepared a change of clothes," Shori suddenly said, breaking Wolfram's train of thought. He held out a small traveling bag to Wolfram. "They're Yuuri's outfits but his size and yours are the same. I didn't know _you _were the one coming back with me from Shin Makoku so there was no time to prepare the usual outfit you wear here but I…"

Wolfram could only stare at the bag. The thought that was running through his mind was, _I came here to escape him and what do I get? I get to wear his clothes_. _Wonder if he'll hyperventilate when he finds out… Oh, damn him to hell!_

Suddenly Shori snickered. The sound was so foreign to Wolfram. He had never heard Shori laugh in that condescending manner before. So he looked up and was surprised to find a smirk gracing Shori's fine features.

"What?!" Wolfram snapped.

"You're not going to _cry_, are you?" Shori shot.

Wolfram gaped. _CRY_?! "Wha– _why you_… how _dare_ you?!"

At Wolfram's indignant tone, Shori immediately stopped smirking and assumed yet another serious expression. "Sorry. I just thought you were going to cry. Yuuri can be insensitive a lot of times and you must be having a hard time right now. And here I am shoving his clothes to you. I apologize if I made you sentimental."

"I am _not _sentimental!" Wolfram snapped again. He grabbed the traveling bag from Shori's hands and asked, "Where do I get changed?!"

Shori grabbed a remote control from the cabinet and pressed a button towards the window. Immediately the blinds came down and covered the window. "Here, you can change here. I'll wait outside."

"After you change, we'll go to the airport," Shori said right before he stepped out of the room. "I'll arrange for the car to be ready in a quarter of an hour. Is that fine with you?"

What else could he say? He was completely at Shori's mercy. He was in a strange world in a situation that was out of the ordinary. Whatever Shori said and wanted him to do, he was just going to have to do it. What choice did he have? So Wolfram could only nod. It was the only approval Shori needed. Yuuri's older brother walked out of the room and left Wolfram alone.

Sighing, Wolfram quickly got out of his wet blue uniform. He placed them in a laundry bag that Shori had thoughtfully included inside the bag containing Yuuri's clothes. Stripping down until he was wearing absolutely nothing, Wolfram put on Yuuri's boxers, Yuuri's jeans, Yuuri's T-shirt and Yuuri's jacket. As he put the clothing items one by one on his skin, he mentally cursed. _Damn. This is stupid._

Shori came to collect him in exactly a quarter of an hour. There was no chance to speak as Shori wanted to get a move on very, very quickly. Wolfram only noted silently that being Bob's assistant had put Shori in a position of high authority; the same guards who had once attacked him when he came here for the first time were now practically rolling out the red carpet for Shori. They all bowed to Shori as they passed. Wolfram would have marveled at that fact except that Shori did not give him a chance to do that. They continued walking at a breakneck pace until they reached the elegant black car that was waiting for them in front of the office building.

Wolfram eyed the car warily. He had been in one before, of course, but being a Mazoku from Shin Makoku, one must always be cautious of Human transport on Earth. Shori sighed impatiently and said to him, "Go on. Get in. It's not going to eat you." He practically shoved Wolfram in.

Only when they were inside were they able to take a relaxing deep breath. At least Wolfram was able to. Shori, on the other hand, continued to look uptight. His expression was so grave that Wolfram could not help but stare at him curiously. Shori did not notice Wolfram staring at him until Wolfram tilted his head to the side and let out a "hmm" sound.

"What?" Shori asked when he finally noticed Wolfram staring at him.

Wolfram frowned. "Is that all you're going to say to me?"

"What do you expect me to say?" Shori replied.

"An explanation would be nice," Wolfram retorted. "You haven't exactly told me why you needed Yuuri – or, in our case, _me_ – to do you a favor."

At that, Shori sighed. "I suppose I should tell you, shouldn't I?"

Wolfram rolled his eyes. "Naturally."

Shori pushed his glasses upwards from the bridge of his nose. He sighed again before saying, "Oh, well, I guess there's no harm in telling you in advance."

Shori kept him waiting on the edge of his seat for a while as he took another long pause. Just when Wolfram's impatience was starting to get the better of him, Shori turned to Wolfram and dropped the bomb.

"Well, Wolfram, basically I want us to fight."

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	4. Chapter 4: Confidence

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram, temporary Shori/Wolfram and Conrad/Yuuri (by now these must be said)

Notes: Does my updated speed scare you? You probably think, "What is she? Unemployed? College dropout?! How come she keeps spamming us with updates?!" But actually, I am not a college dropout (graduated already) and I'm definitely employed so, heck, I don't even know why I can churn up new chapters so quickly. I'm not a miracle writer, truly, I'm not. And God knows I can hardly breathe at work with my hands full with stuff to do these days… so why the heck am I updating again?! That will remain a mystery, I'm afraid. Knowing how slow the pace of this fic (in terms of plot), I just know that the readers will appreciate a quick update and an answer to one of the puzzling questions from the last chapter. Bear with me? Yes, I ask of you again.

Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to EskimoPieCake. Thank you for your long, hilarious reviews, overactive Shori/Wolf imaginations and contagious enthusiasm.  
And, of course, to the 8 people who actually placed this pic among their favorites and the 17 who put this fic on alert. You don't know what this does to my confidence. THANK YOU.

* * *

**Chapter IV: Confidence**

_There is plenty of room for kicking, punching and believing. _

* * *

He stirred awake and gradually woke up feeling panicked when he realized that he was in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar environment. There was darkness around him although not so dark that he could not see what kind of place he was in. He blinked at the ornate ceiling above him and had a feeling that he was still back in his castle. But this was definitely not his room. The ceiling was too low for it to be his room.

Suddenly a sharp spasm shot up in his head. He grimaced with pain and brought his hands to his head. Breathing unevenly, he tried to make it stop but he simply couldn't. He bolted to a sitting position, gritted his teeth and just held on to his head. That definitely did not work. Not able to endure the headache any longer, he let out a whimper.

"Hm? Wolfram?" called a voice beside him.

That took the headache off his mind. Surprised to know that there was another person in the room with him, he turned to his right and… saw Shori Shibuya. A Shori Shibuya with bedroom hair and without his glasses. And his clothes. For this Shori Shibuya was bare-chested. That was when the headache left him for one blissful moment.

"W-wh-wha-what a-a-re…"

Shori squinted at Wolfram in the darkness. He sighed tiredly. "If you haven't got anything to say, just go back to bed."

_Bed_. He looked around him and suddenly realized that he was… in a bed. And so was Shori Shibuya. Shori was in Wolfram's bed. _In _his _bed_. The realization hit him with a vengeance. So did the headache. He snapped.

Kicking at Shori, apparently his biggest offender at the moment, Wolfram screamed, "GET THE HELL OUT OF MY BED!!!"

* * *

_Pffft_. The black-eyed and black-haired boy could not help but laugh. He did not make a habit out of laughing at other people's predicaments but, honestly, the blonde and the raven who had woken him up half an hour earlier with their noisy scuffle made a very, _very_ interesting pair. He wondered why the two of them rarely interacted with each other before. They were quite the tag team. 

"MURATA! STOP LAUGHING!" Shori snapped at Ken Murata, otherwise known as the Great Sage where Wolfram came from, with a tone that did not allow room for giggles and laughs anymore.

Murata quickly stifled his laughter and went back to nursing the bruise in Shori's arm. Wolfram's foot had found its victim in Shori's arm when he kicked the older Shibuya brother off their bed. _Their bed_. It took all Murata had not to laugh again. He just could not believe that Lord Von Bielefeld had managed to throw both Shibuya brothers off the bed successfully in _two _different dimensions. That blonde prince was something all right, Murata thought with amused admiration.

"Ouch!" Shori yelped at the feel of cotton on his bruise. "The hell… I'm going to kill that punk myself! He hit me TWICE! And now _this_! I swear to God I'm going to teach that kid a lesson!"

"Now, now, Yuuri's big brother," Murata teased lightly, "It's your own fault for telling him about the fight while being within punching range from him. And him kicking you out of bed… well, I can't exactly say that it was entirely your fault – I seriously don't know how your colleague managed to mix up the hotel reservations, booking a room with one bed instead of two twin beds – but I can say that you probably should not have molested him."

Shori looked up indignantly at Murata and snapped again, "I did NOT molest him! All I did was tell him to go back to bed!"

"Why did you force your way into his bed in the first place anyway?" Murata replied, applying band-aid now to the bruising.

The question was a teasing, of course, but due to emotional sensitivity Shori retorted, "Hey! That's _my_ bed! I paid for this accommodation!"

Before Murata could reply, Wolfram walked out of the bathroom where Murata had shoved him in half an hour earlier to take a shower and he did so with a slamming of the door. He was in a bathrobe that was entirely too big for his petit stature, looking deliciously wet (although it was only Murata who noticed this because Shori was too busy worrying about his bruise) and smelling deliciously nice of mint soap. Murata smiled brightly at Wolfram.

The blonde, however, did not return the gesture. Instead he flailed a pair of boxer shorts with a print of a yellow duckling on it. Murata and Shori could not help but be drawn to the sight of the boxers. Wolfram asked then, "What the hell is this?"

"It's, ah, well… boxers," Murata answered. He noticed the duckling and knew he had seen it before in a certain bathhouse where he and his best friend once went to. "I believe it's Yuuri's."

"This… this… thing… it's ridiculous! And it's Yuuri's underwear! You expect me to wear Yuuri's ridiculous underwear?!" Wolfram demanded.

Shori raised his eyebrows. "I told you I was expecting _him_. So naturally I brought _him his _clothes. _You_ volunteered to come here."

"You _tricked_ me into coming here! Playing with my sympathy!"

"I only told you I needed a favor and you were eager to help! What's your problem?!"

As amusing as this pair was, Murata decided that his ears and his sanity could not take much more of this shouting. He decided to intervene and stepped between them to shout, "Will you two be quiet, please? You're going to wake up the whole building and it's not even 8 yet."

At that, Wolfram and Shori quieted. Pleased, Murata snatched the undergarments that Wolfram had been holding from his hands and pushed the blonde to sit down next to Shori in the plush sofa in front of them. Wolfram sat on it without further complaint but everyone noticed that he tried to avoid Shori by sitting as far away as possible from him. Murata sighed while Shori frowned.

"Now, Wolfram, please calm down while we explain," Murata said.

"Please do," Wolfram snarled. "I really would like to get to the bottom of this, especially after he tricked me into granting him a favor, which turned out to be a ridiculous hoax. And I would also like to know how _you_ got involved in this ridiculous business, Ken Murata. And don't try to lie to me. I may not be able to use my fire magic here but I can still throw a punch!"

Shori looked like he wanted to snarl back at Wolfram but Murata raised his hands to calm him down. Murata smiled at Wolfram to placate the blonde and then said, "Yes, we do owe you a big explanation. But you have to promise not to use violence around here."

"How is that possible?!" Wolfram retorted. "He wants us to _fight_! What the hell does that mean?!"

"If you can let me explain now, I'll tell you what it means," Murata said patiently.

Wolfram quieted immediately. Shori had to hand it to Murata. The boy was not _the_ Great Sage for nothing after all.

Now that Wolfram was quiet, Murata was pleased and he started his explanation.

* * *

Long after Murata finished his explanation, Wolfram continued to sit at the hotel suite's living room – the suite that Shori had booked at the expense of the company – and mused over what Murata had just told him. It took him a while to get the whole picture but now that he did he just had to reflect on it. 

First of all, Murata explained how Wolfram ended up in the hotel with Shori. Apparently, right after Shori had told him that he wanted Wolfram and himself to fight, Wolfram threw a fit. He even punched Shori. _Twice_. The action initiated a quick get-out-of-this-damn-mess strategy on Shori's part so he saw it with to uncork two bottles of champagne which would be used to 'subdue' the mad prince in a drunken stupor so that they could have a peaceful flight back to Japan.

It was a dirty trick – one that Shori was not proud of, he admitted – but Shori decided that he had to do _something_… ANYTHING. Or his face would continue to be a punching bag for the blonde. Thus, the champagne. In a fit of rage, suspicion and indignation, Wolfram drank the whole thing and he was blissfully asleep for the next 24 hours.

Then Murata and Shori expounded on the meaning behind Shori's 'ridiculous favor'. He had asked Wolfram to fight. Fight who? Fight each other, Murata said. Why the bloody hell would he fight Shori, Wolfram questioned. And that was where Bob came in the picture.

"As he has no doubt told you, Shori is now working for Bob-san," Murata had said. "Shori's job is twofold. First, he does actual work for Bob-san's company as his assistant, and second, he is training under Bob-san on how to become a king of the Demon Tribe on Earth. The first job is easy and, as Shori is a capable, competent and hardworking employee, there is no doubt he has climbed the corporate ladder in a mind-boggling speed."

When Murata said that, Shori kept a straight expression. But Wolfram noticed that there was a faint blush on his cheeks.

Murata continued then, "The second job, preparing himself as an heir to Bob-san's throne, is a little bit harder. It's pretty much like how Lord Von Kleist tutors Yuuri, Lord Von Voltaire makes Yuuri sign documents and Lord Weller and yourself train Yuuri to fight with a sword. Except that it's done by just one mentor and one pupil. You can imagine how exhausting it is for Bob-san who is already at an advanced age. Luckily, Shori here is very smart so the part about ancestry, history, customs and documents was completed very early. The only thing that Shori still needs to work hard on is his Maryoku skill, which is the main lesson that Bob-san is teaching him."

He had paused to let Wolfram digest all this information, which Wolfram was thankful for because there was just so many things to comprehend. A moment later, Murata proceeded, "Recently Shori has been improving a lot but Bob-san is not easily convinced. He wants to test Shori in his Maryoku skill. Unfortunately, the only one who is able to use Maryoku on Earth is Bob-san himself. Since it would not be fair for the pupil to fight the mentor, Bob-san suggested that Shori find himself a worthy opponent and compete in front of Bob-san next week. Shori came to me, thinking that I actually have Maryoku, which I don't, and asked me to be his opponent. Because I can't, I suggested him to fight Yuuri instead."

Murata explained that it was more appropriate for Shori to fight Yuuri. Yuuri was the Demon King in Shin Makoku. Shori would one day be Demon King on Earth. They both came from the same family so their powers had the same potentials. A better solution did not exist and Bob agreed to it. He had let Shori travel to the other world to fetch Yuuri, which explained Shori's sudden arrival, and even gave the Shibuya brothers one week to prepare.

Except that Shori's brother was not there. Not wanting to waste any time, Shori decided to ask the first available Mazoku who was there who could become a worthy opponent for him. And Wolfram was _it_. The moment they spoke in the stables after Wolfram had stormed out of the dining hall, Shori knew that Wolfram was his worthy opponent. No, he was _convinced_ that Wolfram was the most worthy opponent that he could have ever gotten.

Try as he might, though, Wolfram did not get what convinced Shori like that. Even if he was capable of using Maryoku, his fire magic, no Mazoku but Yuuri had ever managed to use Maryoku outside their environment. He could not even summon his fire magic in Human Territory in his own world – how the heck was he supposed to fight Shori on Earth? He was totally out of his element here!

He said as much to Shori and Murata in response to their explanation. He told them that, if what Shori wanted was a fight with an opponent who was as strong as Shori was, well… they got the wrong person.

Wolfram expected them to be disappointed. He expected them to tell him to go back home as soon as possible (which was what he actually kind of wanted now that he knew what favor Shori was asking of him). He expected them to rush to get someone else more worthy of being Shori's opponent.

But none of his expectations was materialized. Instead, much to his utter surprise, Shori had risen from his seat, walked over to Wolfram, stood in front of him, grabbed him by the shoulders and yanked him up until he was on his feet.

Shori shook him senseless and fiercely said, "Don't you _ever_ underestimate yourself again. I will never forgive you if you do and I will never allow you to be near my brother again if you do. Cowards do not hang out with the king. So stop being one if you still want to be next to Yuuri!"

Those words slapped him on the face. It hurt like a son of a bitch. And as he stood there, reeling from the mental pain that Shori's words had done to him, the older man stomped away in exasperation and Murata followed. Wolfram could not leave his spot. He was stunned speechless. Because those words got him thinking.

That Shori would consider was a coward was one thing (that, he decided later on, was an inappropriate insult) but it was more of the fact that Shori was telling him to never underestimate himself again that rendered him speechless.

_Was Shori actually showing faith in him?_

It was bizarre. Astounding. Unthinkable. And yet… nice.

He had never had someone tell him that before. He had two brothers of his own but, growing up, he had never actually had them tell him something like that. Gwendal protected him (overly much sometimes) but kept himself at a distance due to their age gap and his responsibilities as a first son. Conrart was supportive but, after Wolfram had discovered the truth about his heritage and shunned him, Conrart never dared to cross the borders Wolfram set up for him and try to get himself close to Wolfram anymore. His brothers neither spoiled him nor did they punish him. There was only… distance. The three of them grew up on their own. It was as if Wolfram grew up as an only child.

And here was Shori Shibuya. Someone else's brother… an entirely different person from the people he knew all his life. Someone who was one day going to be a leader of the Mazoku. And he wanted Wolfram to stop being such a pathetic whiner. He wanted Wolfram to fight him because he believed Wolfram was worthy. That made Wolfram want to cry and jump in joy at the same time; Wolfram craved for approval… he got one now.

"Hey, Wolfram," Shori's deep voice called out. Wolfram was snapped out of his thoughts and turned to the door. Shori, already fully dressed, had reappeared in the living room.

"Look, I'm sorry," Shori suddenly apologized. "I know it's a hard time for you. I dragged you all the way here, got you drunk and invaded your privacy. Not to mention that uh, my brother rejected you."

Wolfram could only stare. Shori scratched the back of his head awkwardly in confusion at Wolfram's unresponsiveness. Clearing his throat a moment later, he said, "But I just want you to know that I have faith in you."

Wolfram's eyes widened. Shori _was_ showing faith in him.

The dark-haired man continued, "I just think that there's more to you than a… a… pretty blonde boy." He got the words out in a rush. "You're much more capable than you think you are. Don't let my brother or anyone else let you think otherwise. Just because he didn't say goodbye you, just because he took Conrad instead of you, just because your brothers hold a higher position than you… they don't mean that you can't do anything. I'm sure you can. You just haven't tried it yet."

Still there was no response from Wolfram. Shori approached Wolfram on the sofa. Unlike before, however, he did not lay a hand on Wolfram. He just stared at him intently and the two of them locked gazes for the long time. Then Shori smiled. Just a little. But it was a smile nonetheless.

"I'm glad you're here," Shori blurted out.

Wolfram's eyes widened even more at that statement. It made him look even younger than he already looked. That was when Shori could not resist tousling the blonde locks on the prince's head. After that Shori removed his hand from Wolfram's head and moved back a step.

Bowing, Shori said, "_Yoroshiku onegaishimasu_."

Wolfram did not blink at that. He did not stare. He did not cry. But he did smile. For the first time in days after Yuuri had left him behind and never acknowledged his goodbye, Wolfram was able to smile.

With a firm voice, finally Wolfram said, "I'll do it."

Shori's head jerked up. His eyes were glinting with anticipation. Wolfram offered his hand for a shake, saying, "I'll fight you."

Grinning widely, Shori accepted Wolfram's hand and gripped it firmly. "I can't wait."

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	5. Chapter 5: Sentiments

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram, temporary Shori/Wolfram and Conrad/Yuuri (only temporary!)

Notes: For those of you who have been wondering where the YuuRam element is in this fic, I present to you Chapter V. Enjoy. In addition, I would like to explain in advance that some scenes in this chapter are written in formal language. The reason is because Yuuri is a royal guest of the Cavalcade monarch so I try to set a 'formal mood'. This probably makes Yuuri a little bit out of character but I intend this to be a somewhat serious chapter anyway. So, apologies if you think that the language is over the top. Furthermore, I wrote something here about Conrart that probably has nothing to do whatsoever with the main plot; just because I've always wanted to write about it. Let's see if you can figure out what it is.

And, of course, thank you for following this fic.

* * *

**Chapter V: Sentiments**

_Yuuri and his Cavalcadian holiday… fun? You bet._

* * *

The double black stomped away in frustration. He was _severely_ frustrated. Sometimes he wondered if it were better for him to not have known this world at all. Right now, he just wanted to disappear from it and go back to his own world. He could not take much more…

"More tea, Your Majesty?" Lady Eleanor asked, breaking his train of thought.

Yuuri cringed. He must have drunk enough gallons of tea to be able to water Greta's flower garden. He could not take much more of this tea. So he said politely, "Euh, no, thanks. I think I'm quite full."

Lady Eleanor demurely batted her eyelashes as she smiled politely and somewhat shyly to Yuuri. Yuuri wanted to tear his hair out at the display of meekness. He was not used to of dealing with meek females. The ones he knew in his life so far were anything but meek. Not even Julia Von Wincott, the past bearer of his soul, was meek although she was decidedly soft and gentle in her countenance. He guessed that there should be a first in everything. So Lady Eleanor Bruner of Cavalcade would be his first meek female acquaintance.

Yuuri was distracted by a clearing of someone's throat. "Ahem." When Yuuri heard that, he turned to see that Conrart and his exasperatingly encouraging smile signaling Yuuri to say more to the jewel of Cavalcade. Yuuri sighed. Conrart would _not_ give up until Yuuri did what Conrart wanted him to do; this much he knew because Conrart somehow possessed the annoying talent of being utterly persuasive when he wanted to.

So as to please his name-giver, Yuuri turned to Lady Eleanor and said, "So, Lady Eleanor, what… uh, do you… uh, like tea?"

"I positively adore tea, Your Majesty," Lady Eleanor answered.

"I see," Yuuri replied. _This is too lame_. He looked at Conrart, who continued looking at him without changing his previous expression. Yuuri resisted the urge to growl. So he calmed himself down and tried again, "But how about wine? Do you like wine?"

"I positively adore wine, too, Your Majesty," Lady Eleanor answered.

"Do you like Malvesian wine?" Yuuri asked.

"I positively adore it, Your Majesty," Lady Eleanor replied.

"Do you really? And how about other, uh, liquor?"

"I positively adore it, too, Your Majesty."

"What else do you adore?"

"I adore you, Your Majesty."

* * *

"DON'T LAUGH AT ME!" Yuuri shouted at his godfather/torturer once he had returned to his room from that _positively_ hellish afternoon tea session with Lady Eleanor.

Conrart tried to bring the slant of his lips down but without success. His eyes continued to twinkle with mirth as he looked at Yuuri's frustrated face. He probably shouldn't have teased His Majesty so badly but he couldn't help it. Growing up, he rarely had a chance to tease Wolfram because the blonde prince was always so high-strung and was quick to produce fire. Now that he was spending time with Yuuri instead he thought that he should seize the opportunity to tease someone else who could be a substitute brother.

But more than teasing a surrogate brother, what Conrart was trying to achieve was actually something else. He was trying to gauge how much longer Yuuri could stand Lady Eleanor, who with her blonde wig reminded them of Wolfram, before the young king gives up and tells Conrart about just exactly what was bothering him so much about Wolfram. If later the king decided to punish him for using this annoying roundabout way of finding out the answer, well… he thought it would be worth the answer and he would not mind so much undergoing that punishment.

Yuuri sighed dejectedly and sat on the edge of the four poster bed in the room that the King of Cavalcade had provided for him. Conrart went over to stand in front of him just in case Yuuri needed something.

"When do we leave?" Yuuri asked.

"Not until another week, Your Majesty," Conrart answered. Since the king asked, Conrart felt compelled to remind him again of their itinerary. "You do remember, of course, that King Antoine of Francshire and Laila are coming to visit you here."

"Can't we go there instead of having them come here?" Yuuri asked again, his tone pleading.

Conrart gave the king a bitter smile. "I don't know if you remembered, Your Majesty, I'm not exactly welcome in Francshire. I was their political prisoner, remember?"

Regret immediately filled the insides of the king's stomach the moment he realized what Conrart was saying. In worrying about his own quandaries, he had forgotten about Conrart's past. It was only a few years ago but somehow it felt like a hundred years had passed between then and now that he forgot that it ever happened. Suddenly the memories came rushing out from the deepest corners of his mind.

Conrart's ambiguous 'betrayal' that had led to their capture by the king of the then powerful Big Shimaron was something that one should not forget very easily but Yuuri always felt comfortable around Conrart despite everything that he had done. The act of betrayal itself was not of no consequence but once Yuuri understood what Conrart had been trying to achieve by doing what he did back then, he did not see it as a big problem. So for him to assume that Conrart was still welcome in Francshire, the country that Big Shimaron's army – under Conrart's leadership at that time – attempted to colonize, was very easy. Apparently this was not the case for Conrart.

"I'm sorry, Conrart," Yuuri apologized quietly. "I… I didn't mean to forget. I wasn't thinking when I said that."

"That's all right, Your Majesty," Conrart replied reassuringly. "Don't worry. I didn't mean to be sarcastic either. I'm sorry for making you feel uneasy."

Yuuri smiled exasperatedly and demanded in a mock severe tone, "You apologize for making me feel uneasy just now but not for making me get acquainted with Lady Eleanor?"

The soldier raised his eyebrows. "Why are you complaining? You said, 'Lead the way!' So I did. I introduced you to the most beautiful aristocrat in Cavalcade. You should be happy for that!"

"But she's insufferable!" Yuuri exploded. "She's so meek! She can't talk without batting her eyelashes! Or… or… fanning herself with that outrageously colorful fan of hers! Mind you, she almost poked my eyes out the other day when she fanned herself! And she walks so slowly! Always counting her steps! Do me a favor and just stab me with a knife!"

Conrart tried hard not to burst out laughing. Coughing to cover his amusement, he then tried to put forth a serious argument. "You are always complaining about our kingdom not having enough beautiful ladies. I know for a fact that there _are_ plenty of beautiful ladies in our kingdom but perhaps your standard is just too high. Fortunately for you, Lady Eleanor is said to be more beautiful than anyone else in both our territory and the Human Territory! Besides, she's blonde and she has green eyes! Isn't blonde-with-green-eyes your type?"

At that one instant, Yuuri was flushed with embarrassment so bad that he turned crimson on the spot. With just one mere mention of his fiancé's hair and eye color… he was looking like a ripe tomato. He sincerely wished someone – _anyone_ – could do him that favor. Just stab him, stab him _now_, damn it!

To say that Conrart felt pleased with Yuuri's reaction was an understatement. He was _ecstatic_. Oh dear Shin'ou, what had become of him? He was supposed to be the king's guardian. He was the king's confidante. And now he was teasing him mercilessly! He should be punished for all this but, damn it all, this was all too much fun to be given up.

"I'm going to take a nap!" Yuuri finally exclaimed as he dashed to his bed and got inside the covers so quickly that he must have set a new record. He pulled the covers on top of him and concealed his whole body under it.

Conrart stood at the center of the luxurious bedchamber without doing anything in particular for a full minute as he weighed his options. He could, of course, leave the chamber and let His Majesty rest for an hour or two before he sends him off to dine with Lady Eleanor. But at this point, he did not think that he needed to torture Yuuri longer by forcing Lady Eleanor's company on him. He pretty much had the answer was seeking – that Yuuri was indeed thinking about Wolfram all the time, otherwise he would not have gone tomato at the mere mention of 'blonde and green eyes' – and he was perfectly happy to let matters rest for now. That, however, gave him no reason to leave the room at all. In fact, he would very much like to stay here and talk to Yuuri some more about whatever feelings he had for his fiancé.

Bracing himself for opposition, Conrart strode purposefully towards the bed and sat on the edge of it. His weight shifted the mattress and, sure enough, Yuuri felt it. Before Yuuri could protest, however, Conrart placed his hands on the big lump that was Yuuri and shook the king to pay attention to him.

"You don't need to get out of the covers, Yuuri," Conrart began softly. "I just need you to hear me out."

There was no reply from under the covers. Conrart took it as a "go ahead". So he went ahead. "You know that I set you up with Lady Eleanor on purpose. I'm sorry if I caused you any inconveniences. It was very presumptuous of me to do that. However, I was not merely teasing you. I only wanted to find out what it was that ticked you off about Wolfram."

Conrart thought he heard a muffled gasp but the sound was so small that he could not be sure. He chose not to comment on it and said instead, "I knew something must've gone wrong between you and Wolfram that you wouldn't take him here. I'm happy that you invited me to come along on this journey as your sole protector but that doesn't stop me from wondering why the same invitation was not extended to your fiancé. As much as I am thrilled to spend more time with you just by the two of us, I care about him and it saddens me to see him depressed. He is, after all, my brother."

Sighing, he concluded, "So I used Lady Eleanor to find out your true feelings; whether any blonde and green-eyed person would do for you or whether my brother is the only one who could evoke particular sentiments within you. As I have observed you, I think the latter is true and I think that Wolfram means so much more to you than you let us believe."

He paused to give Yuuri a chance to react. Still none. Conrart understood. Yuuri needed time to think about what he had just said. So he sympathetically patted the big lump once again, to show him his support.

"It's all right if you don't want to talk about it but I want you to know that I'm going to be here for you if you need me." After a short pause, he added, "Always. I'm always here for you."

This time, without waiting for Yuuri to respond, Conrart got up from the bed and went to the door. He had already said what he wanted to say so it was time to leave the king with his thoughts. Or his nap. He decided that a little reading in the Cavalcade royal library would help kill time until dinner. Then perhaps he could also think of a way to dissuade Lady Eleanor from pursuing Yuuri further. He felt guilty towards Lady Eleanor so he had to take responsibility; he was going to be the one who should clean up the mess he forced Yuuri to make.

Just when Conrart placed his hand on the handle and was ready to exit, however, suddenly he heard a voice from the bed. It was Yuuri.

"He kissed me," the voice said.

Conrart froze on the spot. He turned around. He still saw a big lump without a face in sight. But the voice was definitely there.

"And I didn't hate it," the voice said again.

Conrart gulped.

"In fact, I wanted him to do more," the voice continued. "_I_ wanted to do more _to him_."

Conrart had to hold on to the door or he would surely collapse from the shock.

"But I was scared that we would both regret it later on. I wasn't sure we were ready for that yet."

And then, just when Conrart's head was starting to spin, his king finally raised his body from under the covers and turned to him. Much to Conrart's astonishment, the king's eyes were brimming with tears. He looked… so confused. So clueless. And so _helpless_.

Conrart's heart swelled and his throat constricted. He could see the truth in Yuuri's eyes – all his fear, all his confusion and all his _love_… for Wolfram.

"I…" Yuuri started again. "I think…"

Yuuri couldn't continue. Conrart returned to the bed and sat back down on the edge of the bed to wait patiently until Yuuri could speak again.

As soon as he sat down again, Yuuri grabbed his arm and squeezed it tight until it hurt. Conrart reached for the king's hair and tousled it affectionately as he would do to Wolfram when they were small. Not wanting to burden Yuuri with the obligation to speak and explain himself, Conrart said, "It's all right, Yuuri. I understand."

Yuuri nodded. He took another breather before speaking up again. When he was finally ready to use his voice, Yuuri said with conviction, "I want to go home."

Conrart smiled. "Then, let's go home. We'll see him and we'll figure it out together."

* * *

Everyone in Cavalcade had been surprised when they heard that the Demon King was going to cut his visit in Cavalcade short to go home earlier than planned. Instead of the one full week remaining in Cavalcade, he was only going to stay for 3 more days, just enough time for King Antoine and Laila from Francshire to visit him in Cavalcade and for the King of Cavalcade to prepare yet a small yet exquisite farewell banquet in Yuuri's honor. And fortunately so, because Yuuri did not think he could stand another grand party. Now that his mind was made up, all he wanted to do was make the journey back home so he could settle these matters – whatever they were – quickly and have it stop hounding his thoughts at night.

The three kings present at Cavalcade spent most of the 3 days in the conference chamber, discussing their alliance and any other political issues. Laila and Conrart dutifully waited for their kings to finish the discussion while at the same time they exchanged news from home. On Yuuri's last night in Cavalcade, at the banquet, Yuuri finally heard the good news that Conrart had known since the day before – that Antoine and Laila were going to be wed next year and Yuuri was invited to the wedding, as well as Conrart.

The invitation rendered them speechless. It was not really the fact that Antoine and Laila were finally tying the knot – everyone knew that they were meant to be together – but it was the invitation that was extended to Conrart that perplexed them. At the shocked looks on their faces, Laila then explained that the embargo on Conrart had been lifted. Since they were both now certain which side Conrart was on, they decided to accept him back in Francshire, effective immediately. Yuuri was so happy and excited by this generous amnesty from Francshire that he twirled Antoine around in an impromptu dance that drew laughter from the onlookers.

Antoine and Laila's invitation was the only thing that could distract Yuuri from his thoughts about a certain blonde that he had left behind. Otherwise, he could not eat, he did not feel like drinking, he constantly needed fresh air… and he was impatient. All he could think about was sailing homeward bound and coming home to see Wolfram. He did not know why but now that he had heard about Antoine and Laila, his painful longing for the blonde intensified. He did not know what he was going to do when he saw him but he did know that he wanted to be there with him.

The morning after the banquet, the moment came for Yuuri to say goodbye to Cavalcade. After an intricate farewell ceremony at the palace courtyard, Yuuri and Conrart boarded Mr. Heathcliff's with the owner himself and his daughter Beatrice. They insisted on going to the port to send them off personally.

While Mr. Heathcliff and Conrart conversed, Beatrice tugged at Yuuri's sleeve and asked, "Your Majesty, do you think next time you can come here with Greta?"

Yuuri grinned. "Sure, of course! She would've loved to come next time!"

"And Lord Wolfram too?" Beatrice asked.

The question surprised Yuuri. "Huh? Wolfram? You want him to come too?"

Beatrice beamed and nodded excitedly. "Yes! Lord Wolfram is very kind. He keeps an eye on us but he doesn't restrict us too much. I like having him around."

Yuuri smiled at that. That sounded just like a Wolfram thing to do. He knew for a fact that Wolfram practiced to Yuuri what he did to Greta when Yuuri traveled around his own kingdom with Wolfram as his bodyguard. The prince would endlessly lecture Yuuri about security until Yuuri's ears hurt but he never stopped the king from doing anything that the king wanted to do. If Yuuri wanted to get into trouble or mischief, Wolfram would let him do that. He would let Yuuri experience the harshness of the trouble and, at the end of the day, help him with whatever it was that he got into trouble with. Come to think of it, Wolfram was a _great_ educator.

"So, you will invite Lord Wolfram to come next time, won't you?" Beatrice asked once again.

"Yes, all right," Yuuri answered. Beatrice beamed while Yuuri lowered his head to conceal the emotions that were showing in his eyes when he gave her that agreement about Wolfram.

Soon enough, they arrived at the port. A vessel bearing the current Demon King's crest and the Demon Kingdom's flag was already waiting there. When Yuuri descended from the carriage, the soldiers under Conrart's command had lined up to greet him. Yuuri smiled at them and waved his hand cheerfully. The soldiers smiled back. They were accustomed to their king's antics and had long ago accepted the fact that this particular king did not stand ceremony.

Once Yuuri went aboard the ship, Conrart and the soldiers followed. Yuuri and Conrart waved their hands to Mr. Heathcliff and Beatrice. Yuuri was shouting as the ship sailed away, "Bye, Beatrice! Bye, Mr. Heathcliff! See you again soon!" Yuuri replied.

He would have waved for a while longer if it were not for Conrart who drew his attention with a cough. Yuuri spun on his heels and saw that Conrart was holding out an envelope in front of him. Yuuri eyed the envelope curiously and asked Conrart what it was.

"It's a goodbye present from someone who positively adored you, Your Majesty," was Conrart's cryptic response.

Without leaving room for more questions, Conrart shoved the envelope in Yuuri's hands and left him alone to read it. Yuuri stared uncertainly at the envelope for a long while even after Conrart left. In the end, deciding that no harm could come from reading a letter from someone who adored him, Yuuri finally opened the envelope and read it.

---------------------------------------------

_To His Majesty, the Honorable King Yuuri,_

_Your Majesty, by now you must have left the palace and even left Cavalcade. I did not have the courage to face you alone to give you this letter so I entrusted it to someone who is trustworthy. Pardon me for my cowardice but I was not sure how you think of me after all that I have done to you._

_First of all, allow me to apologize for all the inconveniences I've caused to you during your visit. I assure you that I wish you no harm and if you left our kingdom with a bad impression because of me, please lay the blame on me alone and not to anyone else in Cavalcade. But hopefully after reading this letter you will have no more bad impressions. _

_I would like to explain why I behaved the way I did. When Lord Weller introduced us to each other, it was clear that he wanted us to develop an attraction. While I have no objections to meet your acquaintance, developing an attraction to you is unacceptable for me for I already have someone I love. We are engaged although no one knows of our engagement yet – not even my parents – but we are very in love with each other and would like to be wed as soon as possible. Therefore, in order to dissuade you from pursuing me, should you truly feel inclined to feel any kind of attraction to me, I have been acting annoyingly demure in front of you. _

_I hope I did not offend you too much with my demeanor. I am not usually so cunning unless the situation forces me to. In this case, I acted the way I did out of my love for my fiancé. But I hope… no, I am sure you understand my feelings because I have heard about your engagement with Lord Wolfram Von Bielefeld._

_When I heard that you were going to leave Cavalcade earlier than planned to return to your kingdom, I was surprised. I thought that at least you would have said goodbye to me personally, seeing that we have been forced to endure each other's company in the past week. But you did not. You did not even so much glance my way during the farewell banquet even though I sat right next to you, which convinced me to write you this letter to explain myself further. I spent the whole banquet observing you and, unless my calculations are incorrect, I came to the conclusion that you were thinking about something, or someone, else that is not present in the banquet. _

_Forgive my presumptions, but I know very well the kind of look that you exuded last night when you stared into the empty space ahead of you. It was a look that expressed longing – one that is usually reserved for someone you love or, at least, care about very deeply. I know this very well because I often have that kind of look on my face when I think about the one I love. And I hope I am not wrong when I assume that your fiancé is the reason why you had that look on your face._

_In saying that, I wish to wish _you_ all the best of luck with Lord Von Bielefeld. Many men have tried to court me and claimed to love me before this. Even those who are already married! They fancy themselves in love with the so-called 'Jewel of Cavalcade' and do not care if said Jewel is a pathetic spineless simpering female with mush for brains. You, Your Majesty, are the only one who has managed to resist my charms… after watching you last night, I am quite certain that you managed to do so because of the one you love, Lord Von Bielefeld. Although your fiancé is not present with you he is always on your mind. _

_For whatever reason Lord Von Bielefeld failed to accompany you at this trip, I hope you and him will continue to be together and I hope you will come to visit us in Cavalcade with him the next time._

_Have a safe journey home, Your Majesty. I wish you all the best._

_Yours in friendship,_

_Lady Eleanor Bruner of Cavalcade_

---------------------------------------------_  
_

Yuuri had to read the letter twice… and even thrice to believe what he was reading. This was completely unexpected. He could not believe his eyes – who would have thought that Lady Eleanor was this kind of person? Of course he was glad that he could now bury his bad impression of Lady Eleanor but to actually read a letter of confession from her… this was amazing!

However, the next thing that hit his mind was something less than amazing… shame was beginning to seep in his mind. And, worse yet, it was soon seeping into his heart. It was the same kind of shame that he had felt on the ship on his way to Cavalcade. The one that made him feel downright stupid, cowardly and wimpy all over again.

Lady Eleanor said she could tell that he was longing for Wolfram. Conrart must have known too the depths of his feelings for Wolfram, too. If not, why would he have gone out of his way to test Yuuri's feelings by using tricks and deceptions? Heck, everyone in the entire kingdom must have known how much he cared about Wolfram. They had danced together! Of course, everyone knew!

Everyone knew except him! And God, how he had hurt Wolfram… when he left without saying goodbye… without acknowledging his goodbye… how could he? Yuuri felt like stabbing _himself_ now.

Clenching the letter tightly in his hands, Yuuri turned to face the broad sea. Determinedly, he whispered into the air, "Wait for me, Wolfram. I'll get us out of this mess."

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	6. Chapter 6: Bond

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram. (It may look like Shori/Wolfram and Conrad/Yuuri at the moment but it's really not.)

Notes: In this chapter, I wrote about a Maryoku duel using magic elements. In this scene, the dueling Mazoku are able to summon magical beasts using their Maryoku, like Yuuri's water dragons. If I'm not mistaken, in one of the anime episodes, Wolfram's Maryoku also took on the shape of a lion-like beast. For this fic, I made Wolfram's Maryoku to form a wolf-like creature (to match it up with his name). As for Shori, I chose a swan. It's beautiful and Shori is beautiful. Enough said.

Secondly, I would like to invite YOU – _the readers_ – to request a particular scene that you would like to see in this story. Be it a kissing scene between the older Shibuya brother and the blond Mazoku prince or a scene where Gwendal starts drinking because he misses Wolfram… just request away. Three of the most interesting and _most plausible_ requests will be included in the later chapters of this fic. (They will be chosen at the author's complete discretion so no flames and/or whining if yours don't make it to the end product.)

Lastly, THIS IS - again - A YUURAM FIC. So please stick and bear with me for a while longer?

* * *

**Chapter VI: Bond**

_The Wolfram and Shori showdown.  
_

* * *

He could not believe his eyes. There it was on his palm. It started as a small prick of thing, like candlelight. Then it grew bigger, resembling something that one would see when one started combustion with stone or wood. And finally it took on a form. It had a shape and the size was substantial enough to resemble the kind of fire he would ignite using his elemental magic back from where he came from. 

Wolfram smiled. He had done it. He managed to summon fire. And he was _definitely not at home_.

"That's impressive," Murata remarked in astonishment from behind Wolfram. "You managed to bring it out faster than I thought you would. You actually managed to produce your magic outside your own world. This is… amazing."

Wolfram kept the fire on the palm of his hand burning while he turned to face Murata. He had an arrogantly pleased smirk plastered on his face. "Piece of cake," the blonde replied.

Murata raised his eyes from the fire to the Mazoku that summoned it. He could scarcely believe what he was seeing – this was not the same person Shori had dragged over from the other world, the one who could not get over his fiancé's abandonment so badly that he sulked and wallowed in self-pity until he drove everyone else crazy.

This was more like the Lord Wolfram Von Bielefeld who had obnoxiously challenged his new king to a duel after an accidental proposal. This was the Wolfram that had run in the middle of an earthquake to save his king and catch his arm on time just as the king was about to fall into the abyss. This was the Lord Von Bielefeld that Murata liked.

"But," Wolfram suddenly said, drawing Murata away from his musings, "I don't suppose it's safe to duel _oniichan_ with elemental magic, is it? Will we really be using our elements at all? What _is_ his element anyway?"

Murata shrugged. "I've never known what Shori's element is either but I think his element is water. After all, he's Yuuri's brother."

Wolfram furrowed his eyebrows and argued, "Gwendal and I have different magic elements. It's not always the case with family members to have the same elemental magic."

"Ah, yes, that's true. But you and Lord Von Voltaire are half-brothers," Murata pointed out. "Yuuri and Shori have the exact same blood running through their veins so their element is probably the same although I think their powers manifest in different ways. Either way, I'll let you in on a trade secret." He added a wink to that statement. "Shori is not as strong as Yuuri yet. So you'll be able to take him down easily."

Wolfram scoffed. "That's what you think. Just yesterday he threw me to the wall. I'm going to have to do something about that…"

Murata regarded him with surprise. "He managed to throw you to the wall already?"

"Lucky coincidence," Wolfram muttered. "I'm going to roast him today." A vengeful smirk appeared across his beautiful face. He looked pretty demonic that way.

Murata just knew that it was better for him to stay out of Wolfram's way when his and Shori's mutual training session began. "Weeeell, enjoy the rest of the afternoon then. I'm off!"

"Where are you going?" Wolfram asked.

"Avoiding a hot and wet confrontation," Murata replied.

Wolfram stared hard at him and exasperatedly said, "That doesn't sound right when _you_ say it."

"No, I don't think it does either," Murata agreed but he did not appear to be contrite.

"Get out of here," Wolfram growled.

"As you wish, my lord," Murata said, winking.

Just as soon as Murata left, Shori entered. The older man was clad in a dark business suit that was entirely too dark for daylight. If it were not for his striped necktie, one would think he had just returned from a funeral. This morning Murata had complained like a nagging wife about Shori's color choice but Shori just shrugged it off. It was the only suit of his that was not in the hotel laundry so he had no choice but to wear it.

Wolfram could care less about what Shori wore. The moment Shori appeared, Wolfram shot a fireball at him.

… which Shori deflected rather easily with his Maryoku shield.

Shori raised his eyebrows. He was actually surprised, just as Murata had been, that Wolfram had managed to produce fire that quickly after only a couple of days in training. But, unlike Murata, he was not so generous with the compliments. Teasing and taunting Wolfram tended to wield a better result; Wolfram had started to generate some form of his Maryoku after Shori jokingly mocked him that he was more of a wimp than Yuuri if he could not even produce some Maryoku outside his own territory. That got him started and since then Wolfram could only improve.

"Hm. So you can produce fireballs now. But that attack was rather weak, don't you think? Surely too weak for someone of your caliber…"

Wolfram growled. "Then… how about… THIS!" A bigger fireball flew across the room and headed straight to Shori's head.

Shori ducked from the attack and the fireball hit the potted plant that had been placed to give more 'life' to this indoor multi-purpose sport hall they were in. The plant soon caught fire. Shori concentrated and soon enough he managed to produce his own magic to douse the fire off the plant before the fire alarm rang.

"Hey, don't push it," Shori warned Wolfram after the danger was gone. "It's good that you can produce fire but try not to damage the property. It's not easy finding a place for us to practice."

Wolfram did not reply as he was panting behind Shori. He looked like he had just run a mile. His face was pale and he was coughing violently. It was the exact same reaction that Wolfram and most full-blooded Mazoku had near esoteric elements or substances. Shori was worried seeing him like this and went over to him to check whether the blonde was all right.

"Are you all right?" Shori asked.

"I'm fine," Wolfram answered, still gasping. "I'm just not used to of using my magic outside my own territory, what more outside my own world."

Shori nodded. "That's right. I wasn't even sure that you're supposed to be able to do that. But apparently you _can_. Just don't… overexert. As much as I am amazed by your progress, I would still like to keep my head intact, thank you. Gwendal and Conrart would have my neck if they found out that you got injured while staying here with me."

Wolfram choked out a harsh laugh. "What makes you think that Gwendal won't have your neck now? I'm sure right now he's wringing Gunter's neck in frustration instead because I left without his permission."

Shori sighed. "You're right. I'm really going to get it from him, aren't I?"

"Yes, you are," Wolfram confirmed. "So you better brush up on your magic. By the way, what _is_ your element? Water? Did you put out the fire with your water magic?"

Shori nodded. He showed Wolfram how it was done. Concentrating, he expelled water from his fingertips. It was not much – Shori apparently had learned to control his Maryoku – but it was still substantial. Wolfram touched the wet floor and looked up at Shori in wonder.

"So it is like Yuuri's," Wolfram mumbled.

Shori shrugged and replied, "We are brothers."

"Gwendal and I don't have the same elemental magic," Wolfram said in a wistful tone.

Shori was quiet for a while, contemplating Wolfram's words. Having brothers, or any sibling for that matter, seemed to be one of the things that people took for granted. But for Wolfram, having brothers was a slightly more complicated issue. Just now, it sounded to him like Wolfram regretted the fact that he and Gwendal were _only_ half-brothers.

Wolfram had always said that he hated Conrart because he was half-human and humans were Wolfram's – and the Demon Tribe's – biggest enemies. But if that was his only reason to hate Conrart, then why would he accept Yuuri's presence in his life? Yuuri was as much half-human as Conrart was. Now that he thought about it, Shori came to the conclusion it was not the half-human part that bothered Wolfram and it was the fact that _he_ was not a full blood relation to any of his brothers that bothered him.

And no wonder! The three brothers looked nothing alike. They sounded and acted nothing alike. They all bore different surnames, clearly showing a different lineage between one and the other. Conrart was not even nobility! And their age difference… it was just too big. Shori could understand if Wolfram felt lonely in a family of three brothers. Even he and Yuuri, who grew up relatively close, lived in the same house and only had a mere 5-year difference in their age, did not get along _that_ well.

Perhaps it was because he had come to care for this boy who was his brother's fiancé or perhaps he just did not want to see the Mazoku falling back into his old low-esteemed self but Shori felt the need to convince Wolfram that not having the same magic elements as Gwendal did not make him a lesser being than or a completely stranger to his brothers.

"Look, Wolfram," Shori started. "Gwendal and Conrart are your brothers. Period."

Wolfram turned to Shori in surprise at that firm statement. Holding Wolfram's gaze levelly, Shori said, "It doesn't matter if you have different hair and eye colors. It doesn't matter that you have different surnames. It doesn't even matter that one of you is not even a full-blood Mazoku and that you have different elemental magic. No matter what, Gwendal and Conrart are your brothers and they would lay their lives on the line for you. There's no doubt about it. You are brothers. Don't question that."

Right after he had said that, Shori wondered whether he had gone too far. Who was he to meddle in Wolfram's affairs with his brothers? But, somehow, he wanted to. He just wanted Wolfram to think the best of his own situation and not the worst.

Surprisingly, Wolfram was not offended. Instead, he gave Shori a small, shy smile. "Thanks, Shori," he said then. "It's not everyday that someone champions me the way you do. I really don't understand what Yuuri's problem with you is. He's just a wimp after all."

"Oh, come on," Shori dismissed the notion with a shake of his head. "It's you who needs to learn to be a little bit more optimistic about your life, Wolfram."

"I'm serious," He shook his head in exasperation. "I can't see why Yuuri just doesn't seem to be thankful for a brother like you. His obliviousness can be so annoying sometimes… no, make that _all the time_."

Shori shrugged. "Yes but he's got you so I'm not worried."

"He's got me? What does that have got to do with anything?"

"His obliviousness hurts people sometimes but with you're going to be there to remind him of everything that he is oblivious of. I'm counting on you to keep him aware of every single situation that arises, including about the treatments he should give to the people around him. Your brothers and Lord Von Kleist are also there for that reason but you're the one who is closest to him. So it's all on you, Wolfram."

Wolfram had grown very comfortable being around Shori in the past few days, especially after everything that Shori did for him, so Wolfram saw it fit to roll his eyes in response and in pretend anger say, "Oh, that's just great! Dump the responsibility on me! Thank you! I expect _you _to take responsibility as well. You better have some kind of a reward for the trouble you're putting me through with that wimp of brother of yours! You hear me?!"

Shori chuckled. It was so rare to see the older Shibuya brother crack a smile, what more a laugh, that Wolfram had to stop his mock tirade and do a double take. Wolfram suspected that he was among the lucky few people whom Shori showed this cheerful side of his personality to. Just when he was entertaining that thought, Shori attacked him with a splash of water that he produced with his Maryoku.

Gaping at the sudden attack, Wolfram's thoughts turned murderous. _Why, this bloody annoying human…_

"_Oniichan_," he called Shori in a deadly calm voice.

Shori smirked. "Ah, so you're calling me _oniichan_ now?"

Wolfram didn't answer that. Instead, he flamed the tip of Shori's expensive Italian leather boots. Barbeque, indeed.

* * *

The day of the duel came all too soon. It was a beautiful day with clear blue skies and plenty of sunshine that Wolfram and Shori woke up to. That morning, they – including Murata – had enjoyed a nice breakfast together while admiring the view of Tokyo from their hotel room. As soon as breakfast ended, however, their old friend Dr. Rodriguez appeared in their suite to usher them into the duel. In a misleadingly cheerful voice and heavily-accented Japanese, the pediatrician announced that Bob was expecting them in the venue that had been prepared for this occasion. 

Instead of the multi-purpose sport hall that they had been using as a practicing venue, they were taken to a countryside mansion that was a long way away from the hotel where they had been staying. The mansion, much to Wolfram's surprise, bore some eerie resemblance to a building that he had once visited in Shin Makoku; after digging his memory bank for a recollection of the building, he finally recalled his former mentor Suzanna Julia's family estate in the Von Wincott territory.

On the way to this mansion, Wolfram was secretly worrying. He worried about being in a strange place all by himself and worried about the duel. He continually braced himself for the worst but luckily nothing eventful happened. Nonetheless, his nerves returned when he and Shori were immediately separated upon arrival. He could not help but worry that Shori was soon going to be his foe in the duel. The thought was unsettling because Shori was the only person Wolfram could depend on in this world where he was almost completely out of his elements.

He could not enjoy the lunch that was served to him in the room that Murata and Rodriguez had shown him into after he was separated from Shori. Even though Murata and Rodriguez's conversations were quite entertaining – Wolfram did not know what they were talking about (just what the heck is a Hollywood, anyway?!) – Wolfram continued to draw himself in and sat quietly by the window in that room while waiting to be summoned to the duel.

Finally, the call came. Wolfram stood from his seat then, looking outwardly calm although his insides were doing somersaults. Murata and Rodriguez led the way to the courtyard behind the mansion that now reminded Wolfram of the courtyard in the Blood Pledge Castle where he and Yuuri dueled. The déjà vu did not end there. The moment he stepped into the courtyard he could see that there were spectators and they were all standing and watching in a manner very much like that time he and Yuuri dueled for the first time.

Bob was sitting down in a chair. It was not a throne but since Bob had always exuded a kingly aura it might as well be a throne. The space on his right was occupied by his blonde female assistant Sharon. Behind Bob's chair stood Shori and Yuuri's parents, Shouma and Miko Shibuya. Their presence was a surprise to Wolfram. He did not expect them to be there. From the looks on their faces, they were not expecting Wolfram to be there either because Shouma and Miko dropped their jaws at the sight of him walking in to the courtyard. The other people who surrounded them were strangers to Wolfram but he had the feeling that they were not just about anybody; they were probably Earth's Mazoku.

Shori, on the other hand, was waiting at the center of the courtyard. He had a determined look on his face as Wolfram approached. Wolfram, sensing that Shori was completely ready for battle, braced himself. He toughened himself up and prepared to launch into battle straight away as well.

And he was right to do so because the moment he came within striking distance from Shori, the older Shibuya brother started to generate Maryoku. The moment it happened, Wolfram soon forgot about his worries. There was only one thing in his mind: _winning_. He wanted to be better from his opponent. He wanted to be stronger than his opponent. He wanted to win against his opponent. Without caring about anything else, Wolfram released his Maryoku and attacked.

* * *

The fluid bluish green sphere was locked in an impasse with the flaming reddish orange orb at the center of the courtyard. 

It had been two hours and it was turning out to be more of a battle of will than a battle of strength.

Shori had been battling Wolfram for over than two hours. He had used every single trick on his sleeve to subdue the blonde Mazoku but he had not won the duel. If any, he was possibly the loser here. His power and Wolfram's were too much of an equal. Shori had the advantage of better control over his powers and being in his own habitat, so to speak, but Wolfram had more experience using Maryoku and his Maryoku was by nature stronger than Shori's.

Thus, this stinking stalemate.

But Wolfram was holding up strongly… and stubbornly. Perhaps even dangerously over his limit. He was going all out and he was exhausted; this much was clear. And yet, as Shori once again thwarted his fire beam attack, Wolfram was already attempting to summon his beast of fire; a wolf-like creature made up of his Maryoku to strike Shori with. Shori just had enough time to summon his beast – something that resembled a swan – to counter the attack.

Just as Wolfram's beast and Shori's were about to collide, a sharp yellow beam like lightning cut through the middle. It created a barrier between the two elemental beasts and when they crashed the barrier both beasts broke into pieces – the wolf evaporated into smoke and the swan showered the ground wet.

Both Shori and Wolfram were stunned by this attack from a third party. They turned around at the same time and saw Bob facing them with his arms raised in front of them; he was the one who had released the beam. Shocked at having been interrupted, Shori was about to protest but Wolfram collapsed to the ground and started coughing violently then and there.

"WOLFRAM!" Miko shouted when the blonde fell.

Everyone moved at once. Shori forgot all about Bob and ran towards Wolfram who was starting to retch as if he had been traveling at sea for three weeks straight. Dr. Rodriguez approached the blonde with the first-aid kit at the same time while Murata and the Shibuya parents followed closely behind.

Shori held Wolfram in his arms as Dr. Rodriguez performed a check on the blonde after he finished vomiting and blacked out. "Is he going to be all right?" he heard his mother ask to Murata.

Surprisingly, it was Bob who answered the question. "Yes, he is. His body is just in shock after producing so much Maryoku outside his own world."

Shori turned to Bob and shot at him. "Why did you stop us?! Neither of us has won yet!"

Bob glanced down at Shori and the two of them locked gazes for the longest time before the elderly man answered him, "If I had not stopped you, you both would have both been dead."

There was a deafening silence that followed Bob's sentence. Everyone's attention was fixated on Bob as they waited for the explanation for that outrageous statement.

"Had you fought your brother instead," Bob started again quietly, "I would not have interfered. Yuuri would have no doubt won the duel without hurting you too much. You are strong but Yuuri is stronger. Wolfram, however, is your precise equal. The two of you do not have the kind of power Yuuri has to continue fighting to the end. With your current powers, each of your last attacks would have finished one another off for good. Your bodies that have been forced to generate Maryoku for two hours straight would not have been able to take the attack. As much as I would like to see either of you win, I do not think your families would appreciate your deaths on a duel that was assigned by me."

Shouma Shibuya stepped forward, leaned down and patted his son's shoulder. "Thank God for that, huh, Sho-chan?"

Shori sighed. "I understand what you're saying, Bob, but what about my test? Don't I have to win in order to pass your Maryoku test?"

Murata chuckled. "_Oniichan_, I think it's all right to assume that you've passed." Shori glared at Murata's teasing tone but the bespectacled younger man continued, "Of course you passed! Who would expect you're already able to produce an elemental beast with your Maryoku?!"

But Shori was not convinced. He stared back at Bob uncertainly. His boss and mentor then gave him a rare smile. "Indeed, you passed. I did not need you to win to pass the test. I never needed you to win. I just wanted to know how far you could go with your Maryoku at this stage. As it turns out, I am pleased to say that you exceeded my expectations."

At that, an applause immediately erupted around them. The crowd – friends and family included – cheered for Shori. Shori looked around in a dazed state of mind for a while before he finally took it all in – he had passed. With that comprehension, Shori suddenly felt very, _very _relieved… it felt as if he had already succeeded in writing his thesis and graduated cum laude in his faculty! In fact, this probably felt better than graduating.

Shori turned to his parents and smiled at them. The two of them beamed back at him. Murata was grinning like a madman. He was obviously proud of Shori's achievements. And he had every right to be proud; it was Murata after all who had been helping Shori with the preparations for this duel. Just when Shori was about to tell Murata to stop grinning, he heard a small voice from below him.

"Congratulations. You passed."

"Wolfram, you're awake!"

Dr. Rodriguez breathed a relieved sigh. "Oh, thank God he's awake!"

"Wol-chan!" Miko immediately closed in on Wolfram. "How do you feel?!"

Wolfram grimaced. "Like I've been to hell and back."

Bob kneeled beside Shori and patted Wolfram's arm softly. Wolfram was in a lot of pain but when Bob made the gesture he was so surprised that he forgot to wince for a while. Everyone eyed Bob curiously and wondered what the Earth's Demon King would do next.

"Congratulations to you too, my dear Wolfram," Bob said. "You have done what only your king, Yuuri, has been able to do so far. You can use your magic in human land. You are strong and you should be proud of that."

Shori smiled at that. He joked, "And it's all thanks to me!"

"Show off!" Murata jokingly retorted as he nudged Shori and made everyone laugh.

"He _is_ going to be all right, isn't he?" Miko was apparently still worried about the blonde prince's condition.

"Yes, he will," Dr. Rodriguez reassured her. "All Wolfram needs to do is have a good rest for the next few days and he will be fine and dandy again!"

"Great!" Miko squealed. "I'm going to make sure he stays in bed for a week and I'll feed him properly when we get home!"

She tugged at Shori to get her son's attention. "Sho-chan! Hurry up and carry Wol-chan to his room! I'll cook something special for Wol-chan too!"

Shori nodded. He picked up Wolfram and carried him in both of his arms as he stood up. He then walked towards the mansion with Wolfram in his arms. As soon as they entered the house through the terrace door, Wolfram looked up at Shori and asked, "My mission is done here. When are you going to return me back to my world?"

"After my mother finishes pampering you, I suppose," Shori answered.

"But–"

Shori cut him short and said, "You don't need to return to your world just because your favor to me is done and completed. What are you going to do when you return to your world anyway? Yuuri's probably not even home from his journey yet. If you go back now, you're only going to sulk, annoy Anissina and tempt her to tease you again. Take my advice, little brother, give yourself a break. Yuuri made you wait. Now _you_ make _him_ wait."

Wolfram rolled his eyes at that. Shori shifted his gaze down to Wolfram and smiled cunningly as he said, "Yes, make him wait. It's not going to hurt you one bit. Trust me."

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	7. Chapter 7: Aches

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou.

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram

Notes: Thanks for all of your suggestions and requests in the last chapter. I appreciated them and loved reading all of them. I'll see what I can do next with your requests. _Please keep them coming_! I'm still taking them so don't stop suggesting and requesting! And here I present to you more of the older Shibuya brother, his new cute blonde friend, and one heavily pissed off king…

* * *

**Chapter VII: Aches**

_Oh, Yuuri… what have you done?_

* * *

The sudden goose bumps that appeared at the back of his neck caused him to lose his footing and fall tripping on his own foot. When the Demon King stumbled forward, his guards rushed forward to help him but it was too late. King Yuuri had already fallen flat on the ground.

"Yuuri, are you all right?!" Conrart asked as he offered his hand to Yuuri to help him stand up.

Yuuri looked up to Conrart with a slightly rattled look in his eyes. "I have a bad feeling about something."

Conrart furrowed his eyebrows. "About what?"

"I don't know," Yuuri answered nervously. "Something bad."

Conrart looked around to their surroundings. What could possibly be bad, he wondered. There was nothing extraordinary or hazardous or even threatening about the pier they were standing in right now. The weather was beautiful and the wind was refreshing. On top of all, they had finally arrived safely in Shin Makoku again after an arduous ten-day return journey from Cavalcade that was plagued with bad weather and pirate threats.

The return journey had also taken longer than necessary because the king and his entourage had to pay a visit to Lady Flynn in Caloria, which was in the original itinerary of their return journey. Since the recently remarried ruler of this territory was among Yuuri's dearest friends, they could not cancel the visit despite Yuuri wanting to go home badly. The weather and the waiting had kept Yuuri in a brooding mood for ten days with the exception of the two that they spent in Caloria but now that they were here – _at home at last_, where Yuuri wanted to be– Conrart did not know what to make of Yuuri's intuition.

Then again, as a trained soldier, he could not make light of the situation. He pulled Yuuri to a standing position and said cautiously, "If that's the case, I propose we go straight to the castle. The royal carriage is waiting just over there. I think Wolfram, Greta and Gunter came to pick you up as well."

Yuuri did not need to be told twice. The moment Conrart said 'Wolfram', Yuuri immediately ran toward the carriage. Just as Conrart predicted, his lilac-haired advisor and his sweet daughter were waving at him from the side of the carriage.

"Yuuri!" Greta shouted, "Welcome home!"

"Greta!" Yuuri replied in delight as he hugged Greta tightly. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too, Yuuri!"

Before Yuuri even let go of Greta, Gunter launched himself to him and embraced Yuuri in a huge bear hug that suffocated him. He was squealing, "Oh, Your Majesty! Oh, I'm so happy that you're here!"

Conrart witnessed the scene in amusement but to him somehow something was just not quite right with this particular scene. It was as if there was something missing from the picture. There should have been someone else there welcoming Yuuri home. Someone who was also quite close to the king… someone who… then it suddenly clicked.

"Where's Wolfram?" Conrart asked all of a sudden.

At that question, Gunter dropped Yuuri from his hug and Greta immediately squirmed and tried to hide herself behind the mentor. Yuuri noticed the change in their demeanor and was instantaneously alarmed. Conrart turned sharply to Gunter who was starting to hyperventilate.

"Gunter, where's Wolfram?" Conrart asked once again.

Gunter opened his mouth to speak but something seemed to have caught in his throat, thus disabling him to say anything at all. Instead he turned to Greta and exchanged a very grave look with the princess. Yuuri and Conrart knew something was wrong then.

"Gunter, answer him," Yuuri instructed. "Answer Conrart _right now_! Where is Wolfram?"

A million pictures of horror that he could not help but to imagine burst out wildly in Conrart's mind as he waited for someone to answer his question. Did something bad happen to his brother while he was away on this trip with the king? Was he abducted? Was he injured? Was he ill? What if his brother was _dying_? Conrart shook his head at that last thought. _It just can't be… _

"GUNTER!" Yuuri practically shouted.

"He's gone!" Greta shouted before Yuuri even finished the last syllable.

Everyone turned to her. Greta took a deep breath and then repeated in a calmer tone what she said before. "Wolfram's gone. And we don't know when he's coming back."

* * *

He slammed the table in front of him that separated him and his military chief with his hand. His skin stung from the action. There was no doubt that tomorrow morning he would sport a bruise but at this point he could care less. Not even his military chief's glare could stop him from shouting from the top of his lungs. 

"What do you mean my brother came and took him away?! For what purpose?! And why did they have to leave in a hurry?! And why was I not notified of this earlier?! Where was Yozak?! Did he not have anything better to do?! Couldn't you have sent him to inform me about this?! And what about the pigeons?! Why didn't you send a pigeon post to me?! USE THE DAMN PIGEONS!!!"

"ENOUGH!" Gwendal roared to Yuuri's face as he rose and slammed his own table too.

Normally that would have frightened Yuuri so bad that he would hide behind Conrart. This time, however, Yuuri yelled back with a volume that matched Gwendal's roar, "NO! I'M NOT DONE!"

Gwendal was rather surprised to see that very intense reaction from Yuuri. He turned to Conrart, flashing his younger brother a look of astonishment. Upon seeing that look, Conrart shrugged apologetically but for everyone's best interest, he quickly pulled Yuuri away from Gwendal's table before both his king and his older brother completely lost it.

"Yuuri, please calm down!" Conrart said.

Gwendal dropped himself back on his chair, massaging his twitching and throbbing temples. Gunter did not know how much more tension Gwendal could take. He had not been very happy these days because of Wolfram's departure and now, with Yuuri yelling at his face, Gunter feared that Gwendal was dangerously close to either murdering everyone in the room or committing suicide. Gunter sympathized with his friend and tried to take control of the situation.

"Your Majesty, we apologize if we have been remiss in notifying you about your brother's appearance in Shin Makoku and his _disappearance_ together with Wolfram," Gunter started cautiously.

Yuuri's eyes flickered at that but the young king said nothing and continued to frown as Conrart pushed him to sit down on a chair that was rather far from Gwendal's table. Conrart deliberately put his hand on Yuuri's shoulder to make sure that Yuuri was not going to get up and make a scene in that could vex Gwendal further. Gunter noticed that Conrart's hand was trembling slightly as he seated Yuuri and listened to Gunter's speech; the swordsman's mentor knew that his former pupil was not as cool and as level-headed as he appeared. Gunter was sure that Conrart was feeling as angry as his protégé was but, fortunately, Conrart was mature enough not to blow up the way Yuuri did.

"Your brother said that he came here to see you," Gunter continued once the king and Conrart settled down. "Apparently, he wanted to ask you for something. None of us knew what it was that he wanted to ask you to do but Anissina had the feeling that he wanted to ask you to return with him to Earth. The last time Anissina spoke to him at dinner, she suggested Shori to stay for a few days to keep Wolfram company but then after that dinner Greta reported to Anissina that both Shori and Wolfram had left."

_To keep Wolfram company_.

Although Gunter only mentioned it in passing, these words latched themselves immediately to Yuuri's mind. A pang shot up through his heart when the implication of that sentence registered in his mind. Wolfram had been _all alone_. He had had no one to talk to or spend his time with.

_God, how lonely he must have been that even Anissina had to suggest a complete outsider to keep him company!_

The image of a lonely, sulking Wolfram began to attack his mind mercilessly. He could just imagine Wolfram sitting quietly alone at dinner with a massive frown on his face and ignoring Gunter's, Anissina's and Greta's attempts at making him cheerful. And, _oh God_… he could just picture Wolfram sleeping alone in his room, trying so painfully hard to hang on to his pride and not shed a tear while he was wishing that he could be somewhere else… that he could by Yuuri's side…

Suddenly Yuuri felt like crying. _What have I done?!_

In more normal circumstances where he did not have to feel such an ache gripping his heart, Yuuri would have flailed his arms around in panic and tried to make sense out of everything by getting himself and everyone lost in a long, confounding rambling about the whys and hows.

This time, however, just when he thought that he was about to die from this heartbreaking feeling brought upon by imagining a sad and lonely Wolfram in his mind, he suddenly surprised his royal vassals once again by standing up with a look of complete and utter determination on his face.

"I'm going," Yuuri declared without preamble as he pushed Conrart's hand away from his shoulders.

Gunter gasped. Conrart gaped. Gwendal barked. "And just where do you think you're going?"

Yuuri glared at Gwendal as if the question was the stupidest thing he could ever say. But he answered him anyway, "To find him. I'll find him and I'll bring him back."

Turning to Gunter, Yuuri issued his order. "Gunter, I want Ao to be prepared so I can go to Shinou's shrine and go back to Earth. Send a messenger ahead and tell Ulrike that I'm coming."

It took Gunter a while to grasp Yuuri's instruction. After he did, he could only express his incomprehension. "Ulrike, Your Majesty?" Gunter asked, blinking. "But you are able to travel to the other side on your own powers…"

"I need her help to open the portal to Earth because I'm not going alone," Yuuri replied tersely.

"Not alone?!" Gunter gasped again. At the same time, Yuuri turned to Conrart and asked, "You are coming, aren't you?"

Conrad promptly nodded. At that Gwendal shouted, "What the hell do you think you're doing, Conrad?"

Without hesitation, Conrart answered, "I'm going to bring our brother back, Gwendal." Clenching his fist and jaws, he reaffirmed, "I'll bring him back at all costs."

* * *

"Open your mouth," Shori instructed. 

Wolfram did. He felt slightly wary of the object that Shori was inserting to his mouth but since Shori was holding him very gently and did not seem to have any intention of physically hurting him Wolfram tried to relax as he took it in his orifice.

"Close it," Shori said again.

Wolfram closed his jaws and wrapped his lips around said object that was now securely placed within Wolfram's mouth. He nearly fell asleep waiting for Shori's next instruction but some minutes later Shori finally told him to reopen his mouth again and took the object out.

Checking the thermometer, Shori sighed. "Finally… your fever is completely gone."

"It is?" Wolfram asked excitedly. "You mean… I don't have to stay in bed anymore?"

Shori regarded Wolfram contemplatively and furrowed his eyebrows as he thought about the question. Wolfram grew impatient at Shori's slowness in answering him and he tugged harshly at the taller man's arm. His impatience looked so cute on him – it made him appear like an 8-year-old who was eager to get back outside and play in the sun with his friends after a bout of serious illness – that Shori couldn't help but chuckle in response.

Wolfram groaned when he chuckled. "_Well_?!" he demanded. "Are you still going to keep me tied to the bed or can I go out already?!"

Shori affectionately rumpled Wolfram's hair and said, "You're fine. You're cured. You can go out."

"_Finally_!" Wolfram exclaimed. He practically jumped out of bed and ran out of the door, saying, "I can't stand being in this damn room any longer without nothing else to do but read all those books on that stupid game that the wimp likes to play! And I'm hungry! I'm going to get something to eat. I'll see if your mother has food."

Shori stared at the clutter of baseball publications – mostly magazines – under his younger brother's bed. They were all strewn all over the place. Torn between sighing and smirking, Shori wondered how his brother would react when he found out that his collection had nearly been destroyed by the bored and impatient hands of a certain blonde prince. Then again, his brother's reaction towards the magazines would probably be less important than the reaction said brother might yield when Shori told him of what he had done with and to that very blonde.

Before Shori could do anything about the situation, his mother entered the room. He looked around the room and asked, "Shori? I thought I'd heard Wol-chan's voice. Where is he?"

"Didn't you see him outside?" Shori asked with a sigh. "He just ran off. I think he went downstairs looking for you. He said he was hungry."

"I heard someone coming down the stairs but I thought that was you," Miko Shibuya replied. Her face brightened then. "So Wol-chan can already get up from bed? He's cured?"

"Completely," Shori replied. "I just checked his temperature. The fever's gone."

Miko squealed, "That's great! Now you can take him to go sightseeing! You should plan an itinerary soon! Yokohama, Kyoto, Nagano, Sapporo… no, no, how about Okinawa?"

Shori rolled his eyes at his mother's child-like enthusiasm over the situation. She seemed to have forgotten that Wolfram came from another dimension and that he was here on some sort of 'borrowed time'. Suggesting that Shori should take him out to go sightseeing like Wolfram was some kind of an Austrian exchange student staying at their house, Shori couldn't help but wonder how his mother's mind worked.

At the same time, however, it was not as if Shori had not thought about taking Wolfram to go sightseeing just so they could spend more time together. He had asked Wolfram to stay for a couple of more days on Earth so that the Mazoku could recover from his exhaustion (and he was glad he suggested it because Wolfram had suffered from a terrible fever for three days after that physically taxing duel) and so Wolfram could buy more time until Yuuri returned from wherever it was that he went to. The last thing Shori wanted was to have Wolfram's morale drop thanks to Yuuri's insensitivity. That would be a pity, especially after all the courage and vigor the blonde had marvelously shown during his time on Earth. But in the span of those three days that he had to take care of Wolfram during the fever, Shori couldn't help but wish that Wolfram would stay because he liked staying on Earth with him and his family.

The thought was odd. Shori did not think he and Wolfram would – or could – have bonded in this way. But they did. Shori never did have that many friends and the only person he wanted as best friend was his own brother who continually rejected him. So now that he had been able to find a friend in Wolfram, he found it hard to let go of him.

"Ah, I almost forgot," Miko exclaimed, breaking Shori's train of thought. "Didn't you say Wolfram was looking for me? I better go to him! Are you coming, Shori?"

"Yeah, sure," Shori replied. Following after his mother, he file outside Yuuri's room and closed the door behind him.

When Miko found Wolfram downstairs, the blonde was chatting with Shori and Yuuri's father Shouma. Shouma was stirring a cup of something on the kitchen counter while Wolfram was standing directly across him. Miko arrived to her husband's side in time to see Shouma handing Wolfram the cup. As it turned out, Shouma was making Wolfram tea.

"Wol-chan!" Miko greeted. "I'm glad to see you cured! How are you feeling?"

"I'm great, Mother," Wolfram replied. "And Father made me a cup of tea."

Ever since he first visited the Shibuya family on Earth and presumptuously started calling the Shibuya parents 'Mother' and 'Father', he had never really quite managed to break off the habit. And because the Shibuya parents did not have any objections whatsoever for Wolfram's form of address to them, it was mutual understanding between them that Wolfram got to call them that way although the future of his relationship with Yuuri was unclear. It should also be mentioned that Wolfram had also taken to calling Shori 'brother' (he used the Japanese word '_oniichan_', the way Murata did)… but for a completely different reason. He called Shori that way to annoy him… again, the way Murata did.

"I can fix you up a nice lunch. What would you like to eat, Wol-chan?" Miko asked.

"Anything besides porridge," Wolfram answered.

Shouma laughed. "You must be sick of porridge by now… having eaten it for three days straight. Honey, why don't you fix him your famous curry?"

"Curry is too heavy for his stomach right now," Miko denied. "I'm going to fix him something that is not too spicy. All right? Sit down, Wol-chan. Have some more tea. And you can find biscuits on the table over there."

"Thank you, Mother, Father," Wolfram politely replied.

Just as Wolfram sat down at the dining table, Shori entered the room. He had been a few steps behind his mother when his cell phone rang on the staircase so he stopped to take the call. He joined Wolfram at the table and when he saw the biscuits that the blonde was eating he decided to have some too.

"Shori?" Miko called. "Have you planned an itinerary? You better hurry up! We need to make plans soon!"

Shori once again rolled his eyes quietly in response. He swore that this was becoming a habit.

"What's that all about?" Wolfram asked curiously.

"Mother says that I should take you out to go sightseeing," Shori answered. "I wanted to do that as well but I don't know if I can now."

Shouma appeared before Shori's sentence ended and he heard the statement. "What did you say? You don't think you can take Wolfram to go sightseeing?"

"WHAT?!" Miko shrieked from the kitchen. She appeared in the dining room clad in apron and carrying a pan. "What did you say?!"

"Please calm down!" Shori snapped. His parents could be so trying sometimes. "I haven't finished talking!"

All the while Wolfram just stared with his wide green eyes regarding them curiously. Shori decided to focus on their guest and directed his explanations to him. "As I was saying, I wanted to take you to go sightseeing but I don't know if I can do it now. I just received a phone call from Sharon. She told me that I was needed in New York."

"New York? What for?" Shouma asked.

"Something job-related, of course," Shori answered. "Sharon said I had to leave tomorrow morning for about four days. After that I have to come back here in Tokyo and attend a meeting on Bob's behalf. I'm going to be very busy for the next week."

Shouma's face fell. He turned to Wolfram and patted the blonde on his arm. "That's too bad, Wolfram. If you want, we can take you to go sightseeing. But you have to wait for the weekend because that's where I get my day off."

"Oh, please, don't trouble yourselves," Wolfram started.

"I have an idea!" Miko suddenly exclaimed. Shori turned to his mother warily, wondering what she could possibly say next. And what she said next was, "Why don't you take Wol-chan to New York?!"

"HUH?!" came the surprised responses from the three males in front of her.

Miko ignored the bafflement the men were suffering and continued cheerfully, "It's a sound idea! Even though you go to New York for something job-related, you will have free time in the afternoon! You can take Wol-chan to the theatre – Broadway, Broadway! How exciting! And you can take Wol-chan shopping in Fifth Avenue! I'm sure we can find some souvenirs for Wolfram's mother there! I imagine Lady Celi would look good in Dior!"

As they listened to Miko ramble, Shouma began to exasperatedly laugh, Wolfram just stared and Shori… well, he had no choice but to produce a huge sweatdrop on the back of his head.

And yet… _New York. Hm. That wouldn't be so bad. He's already been given a tour of Tokyo before. And he has been to Europe before. Why not New York now? … why not?_

* * *

Yuuri and Conrart stood before the water fountain in the courtyard of Shinou's shrine. Ulrike and her shrine maidens stood in a semi-circular position across them on the other side of the fountain. They had performed all the necessary rituals to open the trans-dimensional gate to Earth. All the king and his guardian had to do was step into the fountain that was now beaming with bright light.

Conrart turned around once last time to look at Gwendal. His older brother was standing with Gunter, Anissina and Greta at a safe distance from the fountain. The expression on Gwendal's face was unfathomable but Conrart stared at him fixedly anyway, conveying once again the promise he had made about their brother. Gwendal managed a curt nodded that everyone but Conrart missed.

Yuuri, on the other hand, did not look back. He had already said his goodbyes to Greta, apologized to her for leaving again so soon after only a few hours returning from his journey and begged Anissina to keep an eye on her for a while longer. The redhead seemed to be smirking all the while he was asking her to keep an eye on his daughter and it took all of Yuuri's power not to lose his patience and temper with her. Luckily, everything was settled very quickly and now he could go find Wolfram in peace.

… or not.

His heart was thumping too wildly for him to have a peaceful mood. Whenever he thought of what Wolfram had gone through and might be going through right now, his head grew dizzy with the sensation that was similar to falling from the top of a skyscraper building without a parachute. And when he thought of what would become of Wolfram and him after he had found his fiancé, it felt as if a thousand of pins and needles had attached themselves to Yuuri's insides. And you can bet that Yuuri was none too happy for feeling this way.

He felt bad. He felt nauseous. He felt severely hurt within.

Yuuri took a deep breath as he lifted his left foot cautiously. It hovered above the water for a moment or two before he plunged it down to the swirling water. The moment his foot touched the bottom of the fountain, he braced himself for the uncomfortable tug that would soon be followed by a sucking motion that always accompanied his dimensional travels…

He closed his eyes and waited for it to happen…

But it never did.

Yuuri stood there for five minutes and nothing happened. He just… stood there.

His heart wanted to stop beating. The teleportation had failed. He was not transported back to Earth. The realization was rendering him as motionlessly rigid as a stone.

"Your Majesty?" Gunter asked as he ran towards the king who was still present in front of them in the shrine

Gwendal knew something was wrong. This was _very_ wrong. He went to Ulrike.

"Ulrike, what is the meaning of this?!" Conrart demanded at the same time Gwendal arrived near the High Priestess.

Ulrike was just as baffled at the whole situation as everyone was. The shrine maidens shared a look of complete confusion and began whispering among themselves. Anissina and Greta quickly went over to Yuuri.

"What is going on? Why are they not transported?!" Gwendal asked. "Did you do something wrong with the preparation?"

Ulrike shook her head. "I do not know, Your Highness. Everything has been prepared according to the ritual. And King Yuuri's power alone can already transport him and Lord Weller to Earth. Our ritual was made to ensure an even smoother passage to Earth, not block the way."

"So you're saying you have done no mistake?" Gwendal asked. His eyebrows began to twitch.

Ulrike nodded gravely. "Yes. We have done nothing wrong. Even so King Yuuri's power is capable of canceling whatever mistake that we might have done to ensure a smooth passage!"

At that, Anissina clucked her tongue. Everyone except Yuuri turned their attention to her. "Do you have something to say, Anissina?" Gwendal queried in annoyance.

"As a matter of fact, I do," Anissina declared. She turned to Ulrike and said, "Assuming that you have done nothing wrong with the preparations and taking into account the fact that King Yuuri's power is very strong that no mistake can prevent him from traveling to another dimension, we should now consider that there's something wrong on _the other side_."

That statement created a bomb of silence among them. Anissina gave the others time to comprehend her meaning. When a few moments of the shocked silence had passed, Anissina spoke up again.

"Your Majesty," she addressed Yuuri, "May I ask you a question?"

Yuuri did not answer but he knew Anissina was going to ask anyway. And that, she did.

"Is there someone else on the other side who is as strong as you are who has the power to block your trans-dimensional passage?"

As much as Yuuri loathed answering her, he knew that the answer was a yes. One name popped up in his mind.

_Murata_.

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	8. Chapter 8: Kiss

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram (and in this chapter there is plenty evidence of that... I think.)

Notes: Many apologies for the late update. There was a wedding, an audit and this movie called _Pirates of the Caribbean_: _At World's End_ that delayed me from posting this chapter any sooner. To make up for it, I present to you the longest chapter of this fic so far. ;;; I seriously apologize for the length this time!

Because it's long, I don't think the space is enough for me to write a long note. So I'll stop here to say what I always say at the beginning of every new chapter: please bear with me, thank you for reading and come back for more! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter VIII: Kiss**

_What Yuuri doesn't know can hurt him._

* * *

"Shori! Wait!" 

Shori groaned as he halted mid-descent on the front steps of one of New York's many skyscraper buildings. He eyed longingly at the open limousine door had been waiting for him that was supposed to take him away right this moment before a look of annoyance flashed on his face. Taking a few quick calming breath, he finally managed to recompose his features into the same expression of aloofness and indifference that he was famous for.

Bob's blonde assistant, Sharon, called his name once again and asked him to wait. Inwardly he cursed Sharon's bad timing. Could she not have told him to wait when he was _not_ in a hurry?! Nonetheless, Shori turned around and faced his colleague.

"Yes, Sharon? Can I help you with anything?"

The older woman regarded him with amusement. Her upper lip twitched but she quickly wiped the expression from her face. She had learned on their first day of working together that Shori was not someone to cross. The consequences could be deadly. Right now he looked none too pleased about the delay in his departure. Therefore, Sharon went straight to business.

"I don't know what you were thinking leaving without these," Sharon said, holding a large brown envelope in front of Shori's nose, which the younger man snatched immediately.

Opening the envelope, Shori peered inside and saw that it contained two tickets and two passports. Upon seeing them, Shori finally understood and he sheepishly looked up at the older woman.

"One of the secretaries found the envelope in the conference room," Sharon reprimanded, "I can't believe you left without the tickets! Imagine going to the JFK tomorrow morning and not having your tickets with you. What would you have done?"

"Sorry," Shori apologized. "I really am sorry for this! I was distracted!"

Sharon smirked. "I know. You were thinking about _him_ throughout the meeting, weren't you?"

At that Shori started ranting. "How can I not think about him? I left him alone at the Met this morning! Even though he has that translator device that Murata gave him and can speak perfect English, he's still clueless about this world! What more about New York! He's literally an alien here! What if he gets lost? What if he runs into thugs?"

Sharon chuckled. "Thugs? At the Met?"

"It could happen!" Shori argued defensively.

"Yes, it probably could," Sharon replied amusedly.

"It really could happen!" Shori said, sounding slightly offended by her patronizing tone.

"Yes, of course," Sharon placated. Before Shori had the chance to retort, Sharon curiously asked, "Why did you take him to the museum anyway? Isn't that a little boring?"

Shori shrugged. "What can I say? He likes museums. He's a man of art. On the first night that he was here, I took him to the Yankees game – you know about that; you helped me secure the tickets – and he didn't really enjoy it. He said that the game was 'kind of interesting' but 'definitely not his thing'. I asked him where he wanted to go on the next day and he told me to take him to the Guggenheim. After that, he only wanted to go to the museums. Every morning I would drop him in the Fifth Avenue and he'd just choose whichever museum he fancies to enter."

Sharon raised her eyebrows in astonishment. "Has he managed to see everything?"

Shori chuckled. "Of course not! He's already demanding to take him back here the next time he pays Earth a visit. I promised him that the next time we come here, it will be a longer visit so he can go to more places."

"Will there be a next time?" Sharon asked softly. Her eyes met Shori's and the two of them shared a look of understanding and also uncertainty.

But Shori determined answered, "There has to be. I don't care what happens. I made a promise to him and I'm going to keep it."

"You care a lot about him, don't you?" Sharon remarked.

Shori shrugged but smiled. "I guess I do."

"Well, then, I think it's time you go and meet him." Sharon concluded, "We don't want him to wait any longer."

"Yes," Shori agreed. He looked at his watch and realized that he was seriously behind schedule. Turning to Sharon he quickly said, "I'm off now. Thanks for the tickets. Sorry for all the trouble. See you in Japan."

After a moment's pause, Shori and Sharon both said in unison, "… or wherever Bob wants us to be."

Laughing at their private joke, the two of them waved goodbye to each other. Sharon ascended the steps to reenter the building and return to her office while Shori continued his descent until he reached the limousine that was still waiting for him. Once he was inside, he closed the door and instructed the driver on their destination.

"The Met. And step on it!"

* * *

"… and there were so many books available on this European Art subject at the Met Store so I used the money you gave me to buy all of them. My favorite has got to be this one… Van Gogh! I saw one of his paintings in the European Paintings collection at the museum and it really moved me. I was told by a docent that there is a Van Gogh Museum in a place called Netherlands. Where is that? Is it near from here? Can you take me there? I heard his life was depressing and fascinating at the same time! And I saw pictures of his _Sunflowers_ and they were amazing! And then the docent told me that there was one in an art museum in Japan? Is that true? Can you take me there?" 

Shori did not know whether he wanted to yell, "SHUT UP!" at the chatterbox of a blonde prince who was sitting next to him in the limousine or laugh at his enthusiasm for the art objects that he had seen earlier in the museum. Shori was not _that_ interested in art. And yet, seeing him happy made Shori happy. He was also constantly amazing Shori. For someone who was practically a stranger – an alien – in a new city, in a _new world_, his appreciation and comprehension of the culture was outstanding. There was no doubt about it; Wolfram Von Bielefeld had a brain inside that beautiful head of his.

Shori wondered what Anissina and the others would say if they could see him in his state of exuberance…

"Shori! Are you listening to me?!" Wolfram demanded.

"Yes, of course," Shori answered calmly. "To answer your question, Netherlands is far from here. It's in Europe. In fact, it's closer to Switzerland – you remember, don't you? That's the place with the lake that connects us to your world."

Wolfram nodded at Shori's explanation, his face showing comprehension. Shori continued, "Before I take you back to your world…" He had to pause to clear his throat because a sudden constriction unexpectedly crept in. "Before I take you back to your world through the lake in Switzerland, I suppose we can ask for a few days' extension to travel to Netherlands and there you can visit the Van Gogh museum."

Wolfram beamed. "Great!"

Shori couldn't help but smile again at the happy expression on Wolfram's face. "As for the _Sunflower_ painting in Japan, I do recall reading somewhere that it can be seen at a gallery somewhere. I'm not entirely sure right now but when we get back to Tokyo I'll find out and we can go there together."

"When do we leave for Japan?" Wolfram asked.

"Tomorrow morning," Shori answered. "Tonight after dinner we will pack our bags."

Once that topic was closed, they rode in silence for a while. The New York traffic was more than a little packed this afternoon but since Shori for once did not have to rush to get anywhere to fulfill his business and social obligations on behalf of the company he did not feel the need to tell the driver to find an alternative route. In fact, he was enjoying this solitude in the car, relishing Wolfram's presence and the fact that they were already comfortable enough to be in each other's presence without having to say anything.

Sadly, Shori also realized that his time with Wolfram was coming to an end. Even after telling Wolfram to 'make Yuuri wait for him this time' and stalling for time so he could get to know the blonde prince better, he fully realized that Wolfram could not stay in this world forever. Shori knew that some long weeks, if not months, had passed in Wolfram's world and, although no one was probably missing him there, it was not like the prince did not have obligations to his country and to his family.

Wolfram had a regiment of troops to instruct and train. The last time they were there, Gwendal had been away from the castle. Surely by now the military chief had returned but without Yuuri and Conrad, the kingdom could use extra security enhancement. Now that Wolfram was here, Shori was not sure if his troops could be used effectively for that purpose. Shori would loathe to hear that the kingdom came under siege by some rival war-hungry opponent just because Yuuri, Conrad and Wolfram were not present.

On top of all, Wolfram was also a father. This was _the _one thing that nagged Shori's conscience as an uncle. It was bad enough for Greta that one of her fathers went away for a long time but Shori had to come and take Greta's other father away from her too. This made him feel guilty enough to Greta to consider sending her a box full of souvenirs when Wolfram return to his world later.

"You're doing it again," Wolfram suddenly said.

"Doing what again?" Shori asked.

"Thinking too much that I'm sure you're getting wrinkles now," Wolfram stated.

"It's called 'concentrating'," Shori returned.

"Either way, you're still getting wrinkles," Wolfram replied cheekily. "What are you concentrating on anyway? Isn't your work here done?"

Shori shrugged. "That doesn't mean I don't still have plenty of things to do. When I get back to Japan, there are many things that need to be taken care of. There's also the fact that I have to prepare for your return to your world."

Wolfram looked surprised when he heard that. "Prepare?" he asked. "Why do you need to prepare? Isn't it easy? Just open a trans-dimensional portal wherever there's water. Isn't that what the wimp usually does?"

Shori gave him an exasperated look. "Well, I'm not Yuuri. I'm not a Demon King. Not yet anyway. I don't have that kind of power to transport anyone, not even myself, to another world."

"How did you do it last time?" Wolfram asked curiously.

"With Murata and Bob's help," Shori answered, "The preparations were made in Switzerland. And I have to ask them again to prepare the portal. So the next time we go to Switzerland, Murata will be joining us. He probably wants to go back to your world together with you. For what purpose, I don't know." Shori sighed. "I can never understand what he's thinking."

"When is that going to happen? Murata and I going back to Shin Makoku, I mean," Wolfram inquired. He tried to sound calm but Shori noticed a shiver in his voice when he asked the question.

Shori sounded a little gruff when he answered, "Perhaps next week. Or even sooner."

Wolfram said nothing in response to that but he looked away outside the window. Shori thought he detected a slight frown on the blonde's face but after further observation he saw that Wolfram seemed calm although pensive. The older Shibuya brother wondered what was on his companion's mind. He wanted to ask but decided against it; if Wolfram did not want to share his thoughts, who was Shori to ask otherwise?

To lighten up the mood and get his mind off the depressing subject, Shori decided to change the subject. "So, where shall we dine tonight? What would you like to try? How about pizza? You've never had that before, have you? Sharon recommended me a place that sells great New York-style pizza. Perhaps we–"

Surprisingly Wolfram cut Shori off and asked, "Can we just eat at in the room like when we were at that hotel in Japan? I'm a bit tired and I don't feel like going out tonight."

If Shori wondered why Wolfram suddenly lost his passion for adventure (or perhaps he was just wary of eating something with an unusual name like 'pizza'), he did not say it. But he had no reason to disagree with Wolfram's suggestion and was about to tell him so when Wolfram continued all of a sudden.

"Besides, I hardly ever see you in the past few days!" the blonde complained with a little pout, "How irresponsible! You've managed to drag me all the way to this New York place but instead of doing what your mother told you to do, which is to show me around, you've always been busy attending meetings and meeting other people! You have a lot of explaining to do to your mother when I report you to her!"

Glaring at Shori, Wolfram concluded, "So tonight you better make it up to me! We're staying in and you're going to tell me all about what you've been doing while I've been marooned off in the museums! Got it, _oniichan_?!"

Suddenly Shori found himself fighting the urge to grab Wolfram in his arms and squeeze and cuddle him like crazy. _He wants to be with me! _Shori shouted in his heart. _Not even Yuuri ever asked me about my job and _he_, Wolfram Von Bielefeld, wants to know! _Elated, jubilant, ecstatic, blissfully happy about this turn of event, Shori could not help but grin like a madman in the car.

Of course, Shori did not fail to notice that Wolfram never once admitted in his tirade that he actually enjoyed his museum visits. But, hey, far be it from Shori to rain on his parade!

Wolfram wondered what had come over Shori that he was now grinning like crazy. "What's wrong with you now?

The older Shibuya brother didn't answer. Instead he laughed, ruffled the blonde's hair affectionately and said, "Fine! We'll order room service and I'll tell you all about my work. Prepare to get the pants bored off you, Brat! Just remember, _you asked for it_."

Besides, why bother going out to get food if the food could come to you?

* * *

Lately meals at the castle had been unnaturally subdued. This evening, however, the constraint had risen to new heights and just being there in the dining room with the petulant band of Mazoku men could reduce even the likes of Lady Anissina to tears. Luckily, Lady Anissina was not there; she had excused herself from dinner to work on something or other in her lab with Greta. Not quite so lucky, however, were Doria, Sangria and Lasagna, the three maids who had the duty of serving dinner to the forlorn king and his morose subordinates. 

"Hello, ladies! I'm back! How have you been?" the soldier Dacascos cheerfully greeted as he strolled into the kitchen just when the three colorfully uniformed maids were rearranging plates with untouched foods on the kitchen table.

His greeting was blatantly ignored as Sangria slammed a spork into the sink. She was apparently annoyed. Lasagna reprimanded her friend for that action. "Sangria! That spork is historical! Do not slam it into the sink like a piece of trash!"

"I can't take this anymore!" Sangria practically shouted in frustration. "How many more nights do we have to bear seeing him starve himself?! How many more days do we have to deal with His Majesty's sulkiness?! Until when do we have to stand that frown marring his adorable face?! It's so frustrating seeing him like that!"

Doria sighed. "I agree. And His Majesty's sulkiness is affecting everyone at the castle. Even Lord Gunter is not smiling!"

Dacascos blinked. He interjected, "What's wrong with His Majesty?"

The three maids gaped. "Don't tell us you don't know!"

The soldier blinked again, now completely bemused. "I really don't know!"

Sangria glared at him. "Where have you been, Dacascos? I can't believe you don't know about King Yuuri's condition!"

Dacascos glared back at Sangria. "I've been stationed at the Western Borders treating the sick children in the area with the 'Sergeant' for one whole month! How would I know what had happened in the castle lately?!"

Doria snapped her fingers. "Ah, that's right! Sorry, Dacascos! I forgot about that! No wonder you haven't shown up here lately."

Dacascos shrugged but his tone was still miffed when he asked, "So, tell me, what _has_ been happening?"

"You're probably better off in the borders, anyway," Lasagna said, "The atmosphere in the castle has been very stifling lately and it's all because King Yuuri is in the worst mood ever. He's been sulking all the time and his somber disposition carries over to Lord Von Voltaire and Lord Weller. No one ever smiles these days. Lord Von Kleist has stopped trying to cheer them up and even joined them in brooding!"

"The Brooding Brethren," Doria wryly added, "That's what we nicknamed them."

Dacascos was incredulous. "That's strange! If even Lord Von Kleist is moping, I wonder what tragedy has occurred!"

The three maids chorused, "Lord Von Bielefeld."

Dacascos dropped his jaws so low that it might as well hit the floor. "Lord Wolfram?!" He gulped. "No! Don't tell me! He didn't… d-didn't… d-die, d-did he?"

Lasagna rolled her eyes. "Don't be silly! Of course not!"

"While you were gone, King Yuuri returned from his journey and found out that Lord Von Bielefeld had left this world to go with His Majesty's brother to Earth," Sangria explained, "His Majesty was terribly upset about Lord Von Bielefeld's departure and even had an argument with Lord Von Voltaire about it. Lord Weller also seems to be more upset than usual about Lord Von Bielefeld's absence."

Doria affirmed, "The three of them rarely speaks to anyone these days. Lord Von Voltaire has always been grumpy but now Lord Weller is behaving the same way. He never smiles anymore. His Majesty, however, is suffering the worst; he eats less and less every day." She pointed at the plates that they had been arranging on the kitchen table. "He didn't touch his food again tonight. It's been almost five days since he really ate anything appropriate."

Sangria sighed. "I think that this indicates just how deep His Majesty's feelings for Lord Von Bielefeld are."

Her two friends nodded in agreement. Lasagna said, "I think he misses Lord Von Bielefeld _very, very_ much and at the same time he is also anxious about something."

"What could he possibly be anxious about?" Dacascos wondered.

"We're not sure. It's just a feeling we get," Lasagna explained, "We think His Majesty is worried that something bad might happen to Lord Von Bielefeld. His Highness has gone to Earth without proper preparation and proper guardian. Even though Shori-_sama_ is His Majesty's brother, they are not _that_ close. What more, it has been a long time since the last time Lord Von Bielefeld went to His Majesty's world. No one knows what could happen to Lord Von Bielefeld on Earth. This is probably what Lord Von Voltaire and Lord Weller are worried about as well."

Dacascos scratched his bald head and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Hang on! If I'm not mistaken, His Majesty is not supposed to have returned home yet. Did he come home from his journey much earlier than planned?"

The three maids nodded in unison. Sangria said, "I think when Lord Von Bielefeld left, he did not expect to go this long. Knowing Lord Von Bielefeld, he would want to be here to greet His Majesty. The fact that he had not yet returned even after His Majesty had means that there is a big possibility that something happened to him on Earth. And then…"

Her voice trailed off, piquing Dacascos' curiosity. He prompted, "And then _what_?"

The trio looked at each other wryly and then shook their heads sadly. Dacascos was getting impatient. "What? Why are you looking like that?"

"The thing is…" Doria started. When her words failed her, Lasagna finished the sentence for her, "His Majesty can't travel to Earth!"

Dacascos gaped and staggered. "W-what! How could that be?!" he frantically asked.

Doria then proceeded to explain the incident of that day at the fountain when their king attempted to teleport himself to Earth and failed and how everyone suspected that there was either Dark Magic or the Great Sage himself behind that failed attempt of trans-dimensional travel. Sangria added a description of how the king suddenly felt so faint at the prospect of never being able to go to Earth or see Wolfram Von Bielefeld again in his life that he collapsed and lost consciousness. He had never been the same again since that day and soon enough the gloom started to fill in the castle and sneak into its chambers and affect all of its residents.

"… so you see, Dacascos," Lasagna restlessly concluded, "These are not happy times. If Lord Von Bielefeld doesn't come back soon, we're afraid the king will never return to his old self again."

With that, the four of them fell into pensive silence. Each one of them was picturing the gloomy days ahead of them, unable to express just how anxious they were about the present situation.

What was their kingdom without their sunny leader? What would it become without him? They had lived through a dark age in this kingdom. No one wanted to return to those days again. Already their lives were miserable without seeing a smile on their king's face for just one day… what would happen if their king forever lost his smile?

* * *

"_That's Heinrich Von Bielefeld, my great grandfather."_

_Yuuri gazed at the man whose regal features were painted to perfection on the canvas framed in gold on the wall in the Von Bielefeld castle. It amazed Yuuri how much resemblance the man on the painting bore to the young man who had just introduced him to Yuuri. Both Heinrich and his great grandson Wolfram were, well, _beautiful_. Heinrich was tall but lean, almost too lean for a man, and his eyes showed handsome youthfulness despite his late age. Granted, his hair was dark, but Yuuri could just imagine him blonde and that would be how Wolfram looked a hundred years from now._

_Earlier today he had met all of Wolfram's relatives when they arrived at the Von Bielefeld holding. Each and every one of Wolfram's cousins were, well, _beautiful_. Apparently it was the family legacy to be too beautiful for male standards. However, Yuuri noticed, most of them had darker hair and darker complexion than Wolfram, making Wolfram truly the brightest and most stunningly gorgeous Von Bielefeld in the kingdom._

"_Moving on, wimp!" Wolfram prompted. He dragged Yuuri over to the next painting, which was easily the largest in this hall of paintings._

_This time, Yuuri found himself looking at a familiar face. Before Wolfram started to say anything, Yuuri exclaimed, "I know him! That's Rufus Bielefeld! One of Shinou's most trusted allies!" _

_He stared wide-eyed at the painting of the greatest of Wolfram's ancestors. Although Wolfram bore more uncanny resemblance to Shinou, there was also no doubt that Rufus was Wolfram's ancestor all right. Their small face, lithe built and hair color were proof enough. Yuuri lifted his hand and extended his arm, reaching out to the painting, wanting to touch that face that looked similar to Wolfram's._

"_Don't touch that, wimp!" Wolfram caught Yuuri's hand before it touched the canvas. "The painting is very old!"_

"_Oh, sorry." Tilting his head aside, he curiously asked, "Who painted this?"_

"_Rufus himself," Wolfram answered, surprising Yuuri. "Rufus was a noted painter besides being a fierce warrior. He painted portraits of all of his comrades. That was how their faces made it on to our history books. Otherwise we would not have known how they looked like."_

"_I see." Yuuri chuckled. "Well, you do certainly look like him. It's like he and Shinou got married and had you as their child._ _How does it feel to have a face like many great and important people, Wolfram?"_

_Wolfram tilted his chin arrogantly. "Hmph! Contrary to how you see me and treat me like I am some insignificant object that you can leave behind all the time to go Earth, I _am_ an important person too in this kingdom. That's why I have the face for it, a face that looks like important people! To show _you_ that I'm important too!"_

_Yuuri burst out laughing. "What kind of logic is that? You can be so twisted sometimes, Wolf."_

_Wolfram suddenly stilled. He turned to Yuuri and incredulously asked, "What did you call me?"_

_Yuuri smiled sheepishly and admitted, "I called you Wolf."_

"_You never called me that before," Wolfram whispered in disbelief._

"_I know," Yuuri acknowledged with a shrug. "But I think I'm going to start calling you that now." Slightly blushing, Yuuri said, "It's a nice nickname_. _I like the sound of it."_

_Now blushing too, Wolfram looked away. They refrained from speaking until the silence grew too awkward for them to bear. So Yuuri tugged Wolfram's hand, whose fingers were still entwined with his from the moment Wolfram seized it to stop him from touching Rufus' painting, demanding for attention. Only then did Wolfram dared to look at Yuuri again. When his eyes met the king's, he saw affection in those dark orbs._

"_Come on," Yuuri prompted, pulling Wolfram towards the next painting. "Tell me about this one now?"_

_It took Wolfram two clearings of his throat before he could answer Yuuri without the gruffness that had captured him. Only then did the blonde prince manage to continue his recitation of the family history. "This is my grandfather, Radulf, with my granduncles, Phillip and Lennart…"_

* * *

_Knock, knock_. 

The knock on the door shattered Yuuri's feverish solitude in his bedchamber. He did not know whether it was a good thing or a bad thing that his reminiscence of that moment in the portrait gallery in the Von Bielefeld family castle was interrupted. The paroxysm of guilt that appeared right after he remembered how pleasant that day with Wolfram quickly subsided thanks to whoever was knocking on the door but at the same time he wished he had more privacy, more time to himself to think about the person that he was missing the most right now.

The caller knocked again. Yuuri sighed. He had no choice but to let the person on the other side of the door enter. So he said, "Come in."

The door opened and Conrart revealed himself. Yuuri's face brightened just a little bit when he saw his godfather. "Conrad! What's up?" he greeted.

Conrart lifted his arms and drew Yuuri's attention to the object he was carrying. It was a tray with food in it. Conrart said, "I came to bring you some dinner. I noticed how you didn't touch your food at all at dinner so I asked the maids to fix you something."

Yuuri forced a smile at Conrart's thoughtfulness and said, "Thanks for the trouble. I wasn't hungry then and am still not hungry now. But I'll eat later when I am hungry."

Conrart nodded. "I'll just put it here, then." He placed the tray on the table next to Yuuri's bed.

"Thanks."

Silence followed Yuuri's gratitude. They stood there, regarding each other quietly and awkwardly as if they wanted to say something but did not know how to say it. Conrart opened his mouth twice as if to speak but nothing came past his lips. Yuuri hung his head and looked up to meet his godfather's eyes once before shifting his gaze elsewhere again.

The awkwardness grew unbearable after a while. It was uncomfortable to be in Conrart's presence and not say anything whereas they could usually talk about anything and everything. Finally, Yuuri spoke up. He intended to say good night (he fully realized it might sound like he was trying to get rid of Conrart but hey, at least it would be a full sentence!) but what came out of his mouth was something entirely different.

"I'm sorry," he blurted out.

Conrart was taken aback. "For what, Yuuri?"

"For not being myself lately," Yuuri answered tautly, "For not… not being able to do anything about the seal that Murata supposedly put on the passage. For not being able to go and find your brother."

Conrart shook his head. "I don't blame you. _I_ am sorry for not being able to do all that either. But you don't have to apologize to me. If there is anyone you should apologize to, it's Wolfram."

Yuuri gulped but nodded to acknowledge the implied accusation. Then they young king sat down on his bed because he did not think his knees could support him any longer as a wave of emotions washed over him again. Why was it always so emotional for him lately whenever Wolfram came into the picture?

"I was remembering our trip to the Von Bielefeld holding. He was telling me all about his ancestors, from Rufus Bielefeld down to his grandfather, Radulf Von Bielefeld," Yuuri said then.

Conrart started. He looked at Yuuri curiously, wondering where the king was going with this story. Yuuri continued, "He spoke proudly of them although he had never lived with the Von Bielefeld clan in their land because of Lady Celi's status as Queen. Among the points that he highlighted to me about his family was that a Von Bielefeld had unrivaled taste and skill when it came to art and that they were all fiercely loyal. Is it true, Conrad?"

The brown-haired soldier nodded. "Many Von Bielefeld family members are fine artists and their loyalty to the kingdom, its ruler, its people and its lands are fierce."

"And so is Wolfram, isn't he?" Yuuri asked, as if asking for reassurance.

"Particularly Wolfram," Conrart emphasized. "He would never accept a task like what Shinou once gave me; betray you and this kingdom to get the Forbidden Boxes even if it is for the good of everyone. He would rather die first."

Yuuri sighed. "I know that. I know that he's like that. But…"

"But?"

"If that's the case…" He paused. He gulped again. "If that's the case, it means… he will come back here again, won't he?"

Once the words had been uttered, understanding finally dawned on Conrart. He now knew what Yuuri was trying to ask: _Wolfram would never betray me by leaving without saying goodbye and not coming back to explain himself, would he?_

Conrart felt something convulsed within him. He was sure it was his heart doing funny stunts inside because he was empathized with Yuuri. Yuuri had never been unconfident about anything before. The happy-go-lucky boy was everyone's 'sunshine', after all. But now Conrart understood that Yuuri was only able to be that sunshine because he had someone standing firm next to him to help him generate his light. And that person was missing from his side right now.

Yuuri was staring at Conrart expectantly, waiting for his response. Conrart felt it was his duty to restore the king's confidence. So he said, "Don't worry, Yuuri. He will come back soon. He won't fail you. With or without your help, he _will_ come back for you."

Only then did the king managed to produce a genuine smile for the first time in days. "Thanks, Conrad."

Before Conrart could say anything, Yuuri had run to him and seized him in a hug. Smiling, Conrart felt a sense of accomplishment for having made Yuuri smile. He might not be Wolfram but for now his embrace would do for Yuuri. With all the affection and compassion he felt for Yuuri, Conrart returned the embrace to his godson and neither of them let go for a very, very long time.

* * *

They had eaten. They had talked. They had joked. They even had beaten each other in a pillow fight. And now one of them was sound asleep in the sofa in the cozy living room of their spacious hotel suite while the other was left to take care of the mess produced by said pillow fight. 

"Hmph, that Little Lord Brat… he calls _me_ irresponsible?" Shori grumbled as he swept duck feathers off the coffee table. "And who started the pillow fight anyway?"

He heard a soft purring of contentment from behind him and noticed that Wolfram was the one making that sound. The blonde prince was comfortably shifting position in his sleep. He even had a small happy smile on his face!

Seeing him so tranquil and so content and so radiant in his slumber, Shori felt rather annoyed. _How dare he?! How dare he sleep when I'm still cleaning up his damn mess!_

Subconsciously Shori grabbed the nearest cushion that his arm could reach and thought of whacking Wolfram in an act of revenge. No one, Shori decided, should defeat him in a pillow fight. No, his pride could not accept that. They might have been tied in the Maryoku duel but _this_ was a different kind of a battle. _This_ was a battle that he could win and _would_ win.

Sneaking around the coffee table with a cushion firmly held in his hands, he tiptoed towards Wolfram on the couch. The blonde was probably dreaming about his visit to the Van Gogh museum and was definitely not aware of the clear and present danger moving towards him. Which was all the better for Shori the avenger!

Slowly, Shori advanced… five more steps… four more… three more… just two now… and… ONE!!!

Shori triumphantly lifted the cushion high above his head and brought it down to the sleeping beauty. "HEEYAH!"

A smacking sound and a thudding one afterwards, Shori howled in pain after Wolfram lunged headfirst toward Shori and knocked him down to the carpeted floor below them. It took Shori a while before he understood what had transpired and it wasn't until he felt the crushing weight of Wolfram's body on top of his that he finally grasped the whole incident. And when he did, he cursed.

"Damn it!" He tried to push Wolfram off him. But the blonde wouldn't budge. That was when Shori realized that Wolfram was still asleep. Apparently that dive, Shori deduced, was done in his subconsciously in his slumber.

_Oh great_, he exasperatedly thought. Was there no way for him to win over Wolfram?! How could have the blonde sensed his threat in his sleep?!

But before Shori finished pondering on Wolfram's secret sleeping powers the prince suddenly made the most unexpected move ever. … _he kissed the older Shibuya brother_.

A real – _very real – _kiss.

On the lips.

And poor Shori, while wide-eyed with shock and disbelief and denial, made the mistake of opening his mouth to try and tell Wolfram to get away from him because Wolfram (still subconsciously) used the opportunity to plunge deep within Shori's mouth with his tongue.

An unexpected groan escaped past his lips. Shori was screaming, _what the hell?!_

But the surprises were not over yet. Because Wolfram then whispered, ever so softly, that one name…

"Yuuri…"

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	9. Chapter 9: Conflicts

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou.

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram

Notes: Well… this is not a happy chapter. Lots of fighting. Lots of arguments. Lots of… physical contacts. Don't expect romance in this long chapter (again, I apologize for the length) but our favorite couple will see each other again. That should make some people happy, at least (and finally show some interaction between the main pairing of this fic). Well, I'm getting out of the way so you can read now. I promise you the next chapter will not be so 'dark'. Please bear with me once again and thanks for reading.

* * *

**Chapter IX: Conflicts**

_Let the punching begin…_

* * *

The sulking men just refused to go away!

Anissina glared at the offensive sight of sulking men who were currently occupying a space in the castle garden, which she happened to need for her experiment, and wondered what it would take to make them disappear because, honestly, so could stand those long faces anymore!

Turning to her pupil and protégé, Anissina said, "The way I see it, Greta, your father and his guardian are in our way."

The young princess did not seem to be concerned at all. With a confident air of someone who had dealt too many times with her 'unstable' parents, Greta smiled at Anissina and patted her mentor's hand. "Don't worry, Anissina. I will take care of this."

Greta walked over to her father the king and his guardian who were lying down and sitting down respectively under a large tree with grave expressions on their faces. The princess waited until either of them noticed her presence but they appeared to be so absorbed in their woes – no doubt still dwelling in Little Lord Brat's absence, Anissina scoffed – that they failed to see or even sense that Greta was there. When a few minutes passed and Greta was still being ignored, Anissina's heart began to ache for the girl. It could not have been easy for Greta to have two big dolts for parents who were too clueless to realize that their behavior was causing their daughter so much grief.

Of course, Greta would never show just how much she was suffering. Anissina had taught her that a lady must not succumb to the difficulties of life, especially if men were the cause of such grievances. Instead of crying during each of her father's consecutive absences, Greta poured her heart and energy to studying and inventing with Anissina. This was her defense mechanism. But seeing now that Yuuri was pointedly ignoring Greta, Anissina felt that she owed it to Greta as her teacher and her friend to make at least one of her parents realize her condition.

However, before Anissina could unleash one of her infamous sarcastic tirades that had been known to reduce even the most powerful Mazoku to a cowering simpleton who hides behind desks and inside closets (just ask Lord Von Voltaire), Greta stepped forward and cheerfully announced her presence to her oblivious and borderline insensitive father.

"Yuuri!" Greta called out to her adoptive father who was lying down on the grass with his arms under his head as a pillow.

At Greta's greeting, Yuuri at least managed to temporarily break away from his current state of dreariness. He rose to a sitting position and welcomed her daughter with a smile. "Hello, Greta! What are you doing here?"

Greta did not answer immediately and instead gave Yuuri a kiss on both of his cheeks. Yuuri returned the kiss but Anissina noticed that it lacked the equal amount of affection and vigor that Greta put in her kiss. Anissina had to physically restrain herself from literally punching some sense into the king.

At the same time, Conrart noticed Anissina. "Hello, Anissina. I see that you're here too," the soldier politely greeted. When his gaze landed on a machine that stood next to the scientist, however, his eyes instantly narrowed. "Is that a machine you have beside you?"

Greta promptly announced, "Our latest invention, '_Show-Me-The-Beauty-Of-A-Rainbow-Colored-Life-kun!_'"

Conrart and Yuuri exchanged wry looks at the name of the device but out of courtesy Conrart asked, "And just what does the machine do?"

"It's brilliant," Greta gushed. "It changes the color of an object and you can do it many times until you find the color you're satisfied with. You can change the color of your clothes, your shoes, your spoons, your curtains, your towels… anything!"

Yuuri laughed. "That sounds great, Greta. But why do you need it?"

Greta beamed at the question. "It's for Wolfram!"

The announcement baffled the king and his guardian and stunned them silent. Anissina smirked while Greta explained, "I wanted to make a bouquet of flowers for Wolfram for when he returns but _Beautiful Wolfram_ only comes in one color. I thought, how nice if _Beautiful Wolfram_ came in another color, like the colors of _Secret Gwendal_ or _Conrad Stands Upon the Earth_! So Anissina suggested we invent a color-changing device! We have been working on it for a month and it is finally ready to test! We're going to test it here, if you don't mind, and you can watch the experiment! Perhaps you can suggest a color, Yuuri! What other color should we give _Beautiful Wolfram_?"

"Wolfram likes sky blue," Yuuri suddenly blurted out.

Greta, Anissina and Conrart immediately turned and stared at him. Yuuri just realized that he had given away private information about Wolfram. Covering his mouth with his hands, he stared back at his companions in wide-eyed surprise. And damn his cheeks… why was he was blushing?!

"Sky blue is good!" Greta interjected amid the awkward silence. "According to the color chart, it's called azure. What else, Yuuri?"

"Soft colors would also be nice," Conrart suddenly spoke up. "Wolfram looks good in soft colors."

Anissina asked mischievously, "And how would you know that, Conrart?"

Conrart frowned at her. "Just what are you implying, Anissina?"

"Oh, nothing," Anissina replied airily. She addressed her next sentence to Greta instead. "Please put in pink, peach and beige into the color selection, Greta."

"Should we get out of the way then?" Yuuri asked nervously when he saw Greta starting to work on the machine.

"No, Your Majesty," Anissina answered. "Initially I thought of sending you away to Gwendal's office to sign some documents because so we can use the place where you are sitting right now! But after this enlightening conversation with you, I think your help would be extremely invaluable for our little project!"

Yuuri quickly got up and backed away from Anissina. "Hey, I c-can't… give you any Maryoku for the ma-machine! I… I… err… di-didn't… eat… br-breakfast…"

Anissina stopped his nervous rambling by glaring at him. "Who said anything about borrowing your Maryoku for this experiment? It runs on a battery that has been filled with Gunter's Maryoku! That should suffice for now."

"T-then… w-why do you need me here?"

"Why, to choose Wolfram's favorite color, of course!" Anissina answered with flourish. "You seem to know what Wolfram likes and dislikes. Of course, as Wolfram's _fiancé_, it is your duty to know. I'm sure you can come up with the most excellent color selection that will impress Little Lord Brat! You are _perfect_ for this job!"

Yuuri blushed again at the implied statement that his relationship with Wolfram had gone so far as to know small details about each other. Anissina's smirk grew bigger and bigger at his blush. She snatched Yuuri's arm before the black-haired and black-eyed boy could get away any farther. She pushed him to sit down on the grass while Greta pushed the machine towards them. After making sure that Yuuri was properly nailed to his spot, she did the same to Conrart. She then went to help Greta prepare the machine. During the preparation, Greta enthusiastically remarked that she was glad Yuuri was there to see the experiment and help her choose the colors. After hearing that, of course Yuuri and Conrart had no choice but to stay and watch.

"Well," Conrart said with a resigned smile, "We might as well enjoy it, Yuuri. It'll take our minds off Wolfram for a bit. Besides, this is a nice idea. He will be happy to be welcomed home with flowers."

"I guess you're right," Yuuri agreed. Sighing, he said, "But, if after this experiment he doesn't come home, I don't know how Greta will deal with the disappointment."

Conrart didn't respond immediately. It wasn't until a long while later that Conrart asked, "Greta or _you_, Yuuri?"

Yuuri spun his head around to face Conrart. The expression on his face showed that he was shocked by Conrart's pointed question. Conrart didn't look away in embarrassment or guilt after he asked it. He merely stared back at Yuuri; his eyes brimming with curiosity. It was as if he wanted to know how Yuuri _really _felt for Wolfram then and there.

Annoyed that Conrart would corner him this way, he was in the middle of forming an appropriate comeback for his guardian when suddenly a blue-uniformed soldier came. The soldier, who undoubtedly came from Wolfram's regiment as indicated by the color of his uniform, appeared to be overwrought as he came to a halt in front of his interim commander and saluted him formally. Conrart was instantly on the alert.

"Report, officer," he instructed the soldier.

"Sir! Lord Von Voltaire summons you to his office," the soldier said, "An urgent situation arose and requires your attention."

At the word 'urgent', Yuuri soon forgot about Conrart's disturbing question and scrambled to stand on his feet. He demanded, "What sort of urgent situation?"

Anissina and Greta stopped working with the machine when they heard Yuuri's wary tone and turned their attention fully to the king and the soldier, who was now talking rapidly to both Conrart and Yuuri. "Your Majesty, Yozak sent a report from the Western Borders. As you know, Lady Gisela has been stationed there in the past several weeks to care for the children in need of medical attention. Because this project is about to end, half of the number of the troops that were stationed there to guard the area and work in the project is being withdrawn."

After pausing for a breather, the soldier continued, "Yesterday night, a group of bandits ambushed us. They attacked our camp and ransacked the supplies of food and medicine. A major scuffle occurred between our soldiers and those thieves. No casualties but several buildings caught fire during the uproar and many people were hurt. Lady Gisela has her hands full treating the injured. Security has become vulnerable so Yozak requested reinforcements. Lord Von Voltaire wants you, Lord Weller, to be in charge of the reinforcements."

By the end of his account, Conrart was already leading the soldier and Yuuri towards the castle. The commander announced, "I must prepare to leave. Your Majesty, it would be best if we go to Gwendal together and hear further updates on the situation."

Yuuri nodded. "Yes and I'm going too!"

Both Conrart and the soldier halted. Conrart warned, "Your Majesty, it could be dangerous."

Yuuri ignored the warning and argued, "I assigned Gisela for the project. I was the one who asked Gisela and the Healers Guild to arrange this healthcare project. If the project is under threat, it is my duty and responsibility to make sure that it continues to be safe. Besides, Gisela is not just a military physician and healer. She's my friend. I have to help her!"

Anissina cut in, "Give it up, Weller! He's never going to listen! Have you forgotten that he's the kind of king who likes to get involved directly? This should give him something else to think about other than Little Lord Brat. Aren't you happy? He's going to stop sulking for once!"

Yuuri glared Anissina but Conrart smiled at her reason for supporting Yuuri's decision to come along. Conrart relented. "I suppose you're right."

Anissina grinned. "I'm _always_ right."

Yuuri rolled his eyes but smiled gratefully at Anissina and Conrart. Then he summoned Greta to approach him. Once she was within arm's reach, Yuuri kneeled and hugged Greta. Greta sympathetically asked, "You have to go, don't you?"

"I'm sorry, Greta," Yuuri apologized, "This is an urgent situation. But I want you to keep working on that machine, all right? Just make sure there are plenty of sky blue Wolframs in the bouquet."

Greta nodded. "All right. Since you'll be gone, I'll also make a bouquet for when you return! So you should come home soon too, OK? What kind of Wolfram would you like, Yuuri? Pink? Orange? Brown?"

Yuuri smiled, kissed her and whispered in his daughter's ears, "The green-eyed and blond-haired one, Greta."

With those parting words, he unknowingly made his daughter cry later on, overwhelming her with the affection she sensed from one father to the other.

* * *

He was seriously disturbed.

…which was strange. He should be feeling nothing else but extreme happiness that he was about to go home and meet his family again, even if that wimp of a king was not going to be there to greet him when he came. The thought of being able to meet his daughter, his mother and all of his friends rendered him feeling giddy with anticipation. What more, he was already itching to get back to his uniform. Earth clothing was not bad but something felt wrong without his sword belt.

Of course, it was not easy leaving this world behind. This world was full of people who seemed to genuinely like him for whom he really, they believed in his abilities and regarded him as a strong individual with more than just a pretty head on his shoulders. He felt more loved here than he had been in his own world. No one mollycoddled him, no one underestimated him and no one considered him as a fragile being who needed pampering all the time. There was no doubt that he was going to miss this place very much once he arrived in his own world.

But surprisingly leaving all this goodness behind was not the reason why he was feeling seriously disturbed. In fact, the reason why he was feeling disturbed was the one person who had been responsible for taking him here and making him feel welcome in this world. Why? Because that person was not paying him any attention!

Here he was, standing in front of him to say goodbye with a smile, a handshake and a thank you. He wanted to thank him for everything; the Maryoku practice, the duel, the trip to New York, the Van Gogh museum… he even wanted to thank him for taking his temperature during his illness after the duel!

But could he say that right now? NO. Instead, he was getting a frown, an unintelligible utterance that sounded nothing like "so long, farewell, take care" and a gaze that emanated nothing but coldness from his eyes.

He had been forced to endure this kind of treatment from him since the day of their departure from New York. Ever since the flight back to Tokyo, he had ceased talking to the blonde unless it was extremely necessary. He had stopped spending time with him and made excuses to leave whenever the blonde came to him to discuss something. He had even told him at one point that he did not wish to be bothered with his affairs any further. Then had gone about his own business, not coming home for a few days and returning only to announce that it was time for the blonde prince to return to his own world.

Suddenly it was back to square one all over again! He had been ignored by that wimp of a king and _now_ he was being ignored by _the wimp of king's brother_! Where was the justice in all this?!

So bothered was he by his friend's attitude that he almost missed the Earth's Demon King parting words. No, in fact, he had _completely_ missed Bob's parting words. Whatever those words were, he would never know now. All he could think about was the way this big oaf was ignoring him and how much he would like to punch him for it.

"The preparations are complete," Dr. Rodriguez called out in a near shout from the edge of the pier where everyone – Bob, Sharon, the Shibuya parents, Shori, Murata and Wolfram – were standing. "The portal is ready! May you have a safe journey home!"

Murata clapped his hands. "In that case, we better go now! Wolfram, are you ready?"

Wolfram did not answer him. He was still staring pointedly at Shori, as if willing him to look at him in their last moments together on Earth. But Shori had averted his gaze to watch Dr. Rodriguez and the lake and continued to ignore Wolfram.

"Wol-chan!" Miko Shibuya's sweet voice called out to Wolfram. "Don't forget to give my regards to your mother and your brothers and the handsome white-haired supermodel from your world!"

They had been through their long goodbye before they came to the pier but at Miko's words Wolfram had to tear his gaze away from Shori. Turning to his surrogate mother on Earth, he forced a smile and said, "I will!"

"Give my regards to Yuuri, too," Miko reminded again. "Tell him to come home soon!"

Wolfram struggled to maintain that perfect smile. "When he returns from his journey, I will be sure to give him that message."

Murata invited him to jump in once again but the reluctance and anxiety on Wolfram's face must have been obvious that Murata immediately reassured him, "Don't worry, Wolfram. I'm so sorry that we didn't get to go to the Van Gogh museum as Shori had promised you but I guarantee you that we will take you there one day. Besides, Bob had already given you a trunk full of Van Gogh replicas."

Wolfram wanted to shout, "It's not about the Van Gogh! It's about that wimpy brother's attitude!" But couldn't because Murata then grabbed Wolfram's hand and pulled him towards the point where they had to jump to enter the trans-dimensional portal. As he was being dragged, Wolfram threw one last desperate glance at Shori, hoping that he would finally say something – _anything _– to him before he jumped into the lake.

Shori had turned his back on him and Murata.

Seeing that, suddenly something snapped in Wolfram. Perhaps it was his logic or his sanity that snapped; he was not sure. All he knew was that he refused to be treated in this way, being thoroughly ignored, anymore… especially by a Shibuya brother!

Shoving Murata aside until the other boy tripped and fell clumsily into the lake, Wolfram turned around and marched straight back at Shori.

"Uh, Wolfram?" Dr. Rodriguez called him in confusion. "What's the matter?!"

Wolfram was not listening. He arrived near Shori, grabbed Shori's arm and, with all the strength his slender figure could muster, he forced Shori to confront him. His action took Shori, and everyone else for that matter, by surprise. But the shock they felt was nothing compared to the time Wolfram started yelling at the older Shibuya brother.

"What the heck is the matter with you?!" Wolfram demanded. "I thought we were friends! I'm about to leave and I don't hear a single word of goodbye from you! Don't forget that you were the one who wanted to keep me here longer than necessary! And now, after all that we've been through together, you're _ignoring _me? You told me not to be bothered by your brother ignoring me and now you're doing the same thing?! What kind of a person are you, you big coward?! What have I done wrong to you anyway?!"

Shori was too stunned by Wolfram's sudden outburst to reply. Then again, he wouldn't have a chance to say anything anyway because Wolfram's blistering diatribe was not over yet.

"If you're going to end up ignoring me and brushing me aside like this, then you should not have bothered keeping me here! What a joke all of this has been! The next time you come to my world, I'll have Ulrike's soldiers shove you back in to the fountain! I'll never let you step into my world ever again. You hear me, Shori?! NEVER!"

Giving the static, stunned and speechless Shori what could only be called a murderous glare, Wolfram concluded his tirade. "I'm done! I'm done with you Shibuya brothers! I'm getting rid of you from my life!"

Without pausing for breath, Wolfram spun on his heels and ran towards the lake. He could feel tears stinging his eyes but he did not care anymore. He was not going to look back again. He had had enough of this treatment! _Enough!_

And with that angry thought, Wolfram jumped.

The splash of water that the jump produced brought Shori out of his trance. He had been so surprised at Wolfram's rage that he had not been able to move, speak or even breathe. But now that he had managed to pull his brain out of the gutter, Wolfram's words hit him with a vengeance.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid! What the hell have I done?!_

"Wolfram, wait!" he cried out as he began to run towards the lake.

Guessing his intention, his parents gasped and started running after him while Sharon shouted, "Stop!"

"No, Shori! He's gone!" Dr. Rodriguez exclaimed as Shori ran past him.

Paying no heed to any of their warning, Shori held his breath and made a straight dive for the lake. As his body struck the ice cold water of the lake, Shori had only one thing in mind: _beg Wolfram for forgiveness_.

* * *

They were surrounded by enemies. There was no escape. Yozak slowly stepped back until he could feel his heel connect to the captain's. Conrart was right next to him in the small circle that they were forming to protect their king. They were joined by Gunter. Now they were three protecting the king… but still only four against the at least forty bandits who were closing in on them.

Yozak swore but his expletive went unnoticed as the other three men were busy keeping watch of the enemy's movement. Each beastly person in the opposing side was carrying at least two weapons. This gang of bandits was unlike the brainless thugs they usually encountered. They were truly cunning and capable of extreme cruelty. The chaos around them was proof.

"Where the hell do they come from?" the king's nervous voice broke the silence. "I thought the Western Borders were the safest borders in our kingdom!"

"We'll find out about their origins once we've dealt with them, Your Majesty," Gunter answered, equally nervous. "For now, let's just focus on keeping you safe!"

"Let me fight, Gunter!" Yuuri pleaded. "I can help!"

"No!" Conrart harshly denied. "These men are dangerous! You don't stand a chance against them!"

Yuuri was about to argue when a flash of lightning appeared on the gray sky above, followed by thunder. Soon enough raindrops started to fall. Within moments, they were soaked wet from head to toe. Yozak cursed again.

The bandits laughed when they heard Yozak. "What? Are you afraid of the rain, Orange Head?" one of them taunted. Another jeered, "Scared to get wet? Worried that your royal garb might be ruined? You royals are such weaklings!"

A particularly ugly fellow with a scar that ran from his temple to his nose snorted. "And the king is hiding behind his pretty l'il maids! Look at him... shivering from fear! What's the matter, _Your Majesty_? Lost your balls?"

Yuuri's blood boiled at the jibe. He unsheathed the Demon Sword and stepped out from the human cage that Gunter, Conrart and Yozak had formed around him. He pointed Morgif, who was positively howling in fury, at the thug before his three protectors could protest.

"You're about to lose yours too, you big bully!" Yuuri retorted.

The villains roared with laughter. Scar Face laughed the loudest. "Oh, look at him now! The black kitty is trying to be brave and all while his hands are shaking. Don't worry, kitten, we will be kind on you and make it quick for you to meet your maker."

"Stand back, Your Majesty," Conrart warned once again to the fuming Yuuri. "We'll handle this–"

Suddenly they heard a piercing shriek from the direction of a ruined tent. The next thing they saw was the appalling view of Gisela Von Kleist's body being dragged in the muddy ground by two men. Her hands and feet were tied but she was not unconscious. Unable to stand the pain, the brave Gisela could not help but scream in pain.

Seeing his daughter in that condition, Gunter abandoned all caution as he ran towards his daughter. "GISELA!"

"No! Gunter!" both Conrart and Yozak bellowed and ran after Gunter.

The moment Yuuri lost his protectors, Scar Face yelled, "ATTACK!!!"

Lightning struck again. This time it was so powerful, so blinding, that everyone – both soldiers and villains alike – had to pause and cover their eyes.

In that brief moment of respite, while shutting his eyes instinctively, Yuuri calculated his action. He was now alone without anyone to protect him but he wasn't going to run away like a coward. He had to defend himself. He was going to charge forward and fight. He was going to swing Morgif and slay every single bloody scoundrel that came his way, with or without help.

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself face-to-face with Scar Face. Determinedly, he swung Morgif at him. Scar Face sneered and easily blocked Yuuri's attack with his own sword. They pushed at each other's blades and were soon caught in a gridlock. Feeling somewhat elated but still wary that he was managing to keep Scar Face at bay in this manner, he quickly contemplated his next move.

Unfortunately at that moment Yuuri accidentally stepped on a small puddle of water and lost his footing. He fell flat on his behind and Morgif flew out of his hands. Scar Face let out a nasty laugh.

"Is that all you can do with your Demon Sword, Your Bloody Majesty?" he mocked.

When Yuuri did not answer, Scar Face laughed again. "Oh, this is all very easy… much too easy… and now, wimp, you die."

"No. _You_die, jerk," a familiar voice suddenly said.

Scar Face's eyes bulged. Yuuri watched in horror as the pointed tip of a blade surfaced from Scar Face's stomach. After coughing blood from his mouth, he drew his last breath and his body fell to the ground like timber. As if that were not enough shock for the young king, words could not express his astonishment when he then took in the view of Wolfram Von Bielefeld extracting a bloody sword from Scar Face's body.

Yuuri inhaled sharply when he saw the steel-faced Wolfram. "Wolfram?!"

"Wolfram! Behind you!" someone shouted, interrupting this bizarre reunion between the king and his fiancé.

Wolfram instantly rotated and charged at the fresh batch of enemies who were coming at him. Yuuri watched the blonde prince fight in astonishment, wondering how in the world had he managed to come here and where in the world had he come from. He would have stayed there and pondered on this all day long if it weren't for the fact that he was in the middle of a battle.

Suddenly remembering the situation they were in, Yuuri sobered up. He pulled himself together and wasted no time in retrieving Morgif. Without further ado, Yuuri rejoined the battle. This time, he resolved, he was _not_ going to fall.

* * *

It had been like arriving in hell. Wolfram had jumped into the lake, fully expecting to be greeted by Ulrike and the shrine guards when he emerged from the fountain. He would have been wet and miserable but at least the view would be pleasant. Instead of that reception, however, he had emerged from a large puddle of water in a godforsaken place in the middle of a chaotic battle.

What had happened next was that Shori unexpectedly emerged from the same puddle beside him, coughing and wheezing, while a great blinding lightning struck. He had closed his eyes, wishing that this was all a bad dream, but when he opened them again, he saw yet another nightmare. Gisela Von Kleist, with her face bleeding, was being dragged by two of the ugliest creatures he had ever laid eyes upon.

The merciless scene had prompted him to lunge at those creatures, kicking, punching, and scratching until he was sure that they were sufficiently subjugated. When the rage had cleared from his mind, he saw Gunter arriving beside Gisela, crying at his daughter's condition. The pitiful scene he had witnessed made him realize that this was real and not a dream or a joke. Without thinking twice, Wolfram grabbed the first available sword he could find and joined the fight.

A hundred slain and burnt villains later, Wolfram finally stopped. There were no more enemies left to eliminate so he dropped his sword and extinguished his flame. Now that the fighting had ceased, he could smell the air reeking of smoke and blood. What a beautiful homecoming this was, he thought.

"Wolfram!" he heard Shori's voice all of a sudden.

Despite the fact that Shori had covered his back many times during the course of the battle, the memory of their quarrel on Earth came back to him. He remembered that he had wanted nothing to do with him. He steadfastly refused to acknowledge Shori's presence even when the older Shibuya brother had drawn near him.

"Are you all right?" Shori asked worriedly.

"What do you care about?!" Wolfram snapped. "Get away from me!"

Shori ignored the blonde's tantrum and instead scrutinized Wolfram's physique to see whether there were any fatal injuries. The blonde seemed to be faring quite well although he was not completely unscathed. The Earthen clothing that he was still wearing when he arrived in this world was torn in many places. The skin that was exposed through the rips of his clothes was cut and bruised. In short, Wolfram needed medical attention.

"Let's go get those cuts treated," Shori said.

He reached out to Wolfram but the blonde pushed his hand away. "I don't need your help!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Shori impatiently snarled. "This is no time to argue!"

Wolfram opened his mouth to give him hell again but a sudden nausea gripped him. His head began to swirl and his energy abruptly left him. His legs gave out and he collapsed. Luckily Shori was there and he was quick. He caught Wolfram in his arms before the blonde hit the ground, just like the time after they had finished dueling in front of Bob. And just like then, Shori carried Wolfram in his arms and took him to the makeshift infirmary where he could get treatment.

As Shori walked to the emergency medical tent that had been set up to treat the injured during the battle, he braced himself for the stares that he and Wolfram were bound to get due to their sudden reappearance in this world – in the middle of a battle, no less – and also for their impending encounter with the people from whom he had taken Wolfram. He knew he was going to have a lot of explaining to do but first, he wanted to make sure that Wolfram's injuries received first priority.

Finally arriving at the provisional structure of the medical tent, Shori stepped inside. Before he could call for attention, however, someone bumped him from behind. He staggered but did not fall. Irritated, Shori turned around to see who had entered without warning and collided with him. How surprised he was to see who had arrived.

"Conrad."

"Shori."

After the brief exchange, the two men regarded each other tensely. Then they dropped their gazes to stare at their physical burdens. Apparently they were carrying each other's brother in their arms. Before other words were exchanged between them, two medics approached. They asked permission to take over the king and the blonde prince for treatment. Shori and Conrart temporarily drew their attention away from each other and handed the unconscious bodies over to the soldiers.

Now relieved of their burdens, Conrart and Shori returned to their staring match. Conrart's expression was unfathomable and Shori's was equally inscrutable. A few minutes later, as if having reached an understanding, they both stepped out of the tent.

Once outside, Shori opened his mouth to say something to Conrart. But apparently the half-Mazoku was not interested in hearing anything that the dark-haired young man had to say. Conrart clenched his fist and connected it to Shori's jaw. And so they began punching the lights out of each other.

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	10. Chapter 10: Homecoming

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou.

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram (but in this chapter there is a touch of brotherly Conrart/Wolfram and Shori/Yuuri love!)

Notes: I hope this chapter is better than the one before although I can't say that this is a happy one either. I realized how complicated the last chapter was because everything just seemed to happen all at once there. But that chapter was deliberately written that way because a change of pace is needed for the sake of keeping things interesting. After all that 'excitement, this time, we're going to slow it down a little bit. But, I repeat, no one's a happy camper here. You've been warned but hopefully you will still find this fic interesting.

I know saying things repetitively is frowned upon in many fandoms and yes, I fully realize the redundancy of it; but this is a sincere plea from my part: Please bear with me a while longer and continue reading. Thanks.

* * *

**Chapter X: Homecoming**

_Tempers flare, tears flood and, oh those wounds! But at least the brothers have each other._

* * *

Right after Shori's right hook hit Conrart squarely on the face, he felt someone grabbing the collar of his by-now-tattered designer shirt and pulling him back. He adjusted his vision that had been temporarily blinded in his rage and determination to get back at the older Mazoku for punching him. Opening his eyes clearly for the first time, he saw Conrart was also being pulled away from him. Yozak got Conrart and Gwendal, who had finally arrived on the area sometime during the punch-fest, got him.

Soon enough Shori and Conrart were being dragged towards another tent that no doubt served as another makeshift infirmary. Once there, they were shoved down to a chair and forced to sit while Gwendal glared at them menacingly. Shori and Conrart wanted to ignore him and have a go at punching at each other again but Gwendal seemed to have had enough nonsense.

"Good job, you two!" he barked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "So now you've resorted to hitting each other for no reason at all in front of the subordinates like a bunch of two-year-olds fighting over a toy! Brilliant! I should congratulate you for being so mature!"

He first unleashed his wrath on his own brother. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Conrart?! You are one of the highest ranking officers here and here are you acting like a boy who was born yesterday with snot still hanging on his nose! Your king is unconscious, your soldiers are injured, the area is still not completely secure… yet you pick up a fight and create a needless commotion!"

That rather rhetorical question went unanswered as Gwendal turned on Shori. "As for you, Shori Shibuya, I don't care what your relation is with our king but I do not tolerate abductors in my kingdom – even more so abductors who involve themselves in a public brawl with a high-ranking military officer! It seems to me that, for all your intelligence and prowess, you possess the wisdom of a sand bear!"

Finally the formidable Mazoku spun on his heel and delivered his final blow. "I will have your action properly assessed and disciplined. I am ordering you to stay put. Don't even think about moving an inch from this place!"

After that, he stomped outside without saying another word, leaving two properly chastised big boys under Yozak's sympathetic albeit extremely amused guard.

* * *

"_What are you doing there, wimp?"_

"_Don't call me wimp."_

_Wolfram smirked at the sight of the king, his fiancé, who also happened to be the biggest wimp in the whole kingdom (at least in Wolfram's twisted opinion), peeping through the curtains at the grand ballroom in Von Spitzberg castle where a majestic celebration in honor of the previous Demon Queen's birthday was currently taking place. The current king was somewhat restless as he stole a glance of the party through the slits of the curtains; his hands were slightly shaking and he nervously kept shifting his weight from foot to foot._

"_What are you so worried about?" he finally asked after he grew tired of watching the king acting so edgy._

_All of a sudden, Yuuri exploded in a barrage of frantic rambling. "Your uncle Stoffel said that I was going to have my first dance with him when I show up at the ballroom! What the hell is up with that?! Now I can't show myself in the ballroom at all! I don't want to dance with an old geezer like him! Sorry, I know he's your uncle… and I don't mind dancing with you, because you're my fiancé and all, but I draw the line at dancing with other men, especially one who is probably two hundred years older than me! God! The nerve of that man! What does he want with me anyway?! Can't you do anything about him? You handled your Von Bielefeld cousins so well… why can't you deal with this one uncle of yours too! Burn his pants or something! Seriously, Wolfram, I would rather bathe in your bear bee paint than dance with Stoffel!"_

_Before Yuuri even finished, Wolfram was already laughing. And he was laughing hard. Yuuri pouted at his insensitivity. Placing his hands on his hips, he reprimanded, "It's _NOT _funny, Wolfram! Show some concern here!"_

"_WIMP!" was all Wolfram managed to say in the midst of his unstoppable mirth. _

"_WOLFRAM!"_

_Wolfram worked hard to stifle his laughter and managed to curb his hilarity to a mere grin but that still vexed Yuuri. The king's pout turned into frown and he turned around, refusing to look at Wolfram. Realizing that Yuuri was upset, Wolfram finally sighed, rolled his eyes and approached the young king._

"_Don't be angry, Yuuri," Wolfram said softly as he touched Yuuri's shoulder with one hand._

_Yuuri tried to shrug away from Wolfram's touch but the blonde prince's other hand took Yuuri's other shoulder and forced the king to turn around and face him. After a moment's struggle with Yuuri stubbornness, Wolfram finally managed to make Yuuri look at him. Apparently, Yuuri was _still_ pouting._

"_Come on, wimp," Wolfram said, nodding towards the curtain. "We'll waltz into the ballroom together."_

_Yuuri gaped. "Are you kidding me?! Are you saying we walk in there while twirling around together?!"_

_Wolfram glared at his fiancé. "Do you have any better idea? You said I had to do something about Stoffel! Now if you don't want to have your first dance with him upon your entrance in the ballroom, you should just walk in there and dance with someone more appropriate – as in _MEyour fiancé_! Besides, if you've got your hands full of me since the beginning, you will have an excuse not to meet Stoffel at all! You can just tell him that I'm monopolizing you for the whole evening! Do you get any of that, wimp?"_

_It took Yuuri a while to grasp Wolfram's intention but when he did, he broke out in a big smile. "Ah, I see…now I get it! So that means… once you've got your hands on mine, you won't ever let go, right? You're going to keep me by your side all night long, right? You're not going to let me mingle with anyone tonight, right?"_

_Wolfram raised his eyebrows. "Oh, so you're actually looking forward to the prospect of spending the whole night at a party with me instead of with some insipid female for a change? Because, you know, that's what you do at all the other parties. Ignore me, talk to the girls. Or to Conrart. Right?"_

_Yuuri blushed but he retorted, "I don't do that!"_

_Wolfram snorted quite ungentlemanly. "Whatever, wimp."_

"_Wolfram…"_

"_What now?!" He sighed in impatience. "Are we going to dance or not?!"_

"_Thank you."_

_Wolfram snorted again. "You're welcome, wimp. Now let's go!"_

_Without warning, Wolfram took Yuuri's hand in his and pulled him out through the curtain. Yuuri nearly tripped on the long velvety fabric of the curtain but Wolfram's hold kept him steady and prevented him from an embarrassing fall. Wolfram practically dragged him to the edge of the dance floor, just as the music from the previous waltz ended. The ball announcer spotted them and announced to the crowd that His Majesty King Yuuri Shibuya and His Highness Lord Wolfram Von Bielefeld had arrived. _

_From the corner of his eyes Yuuri saw Stoffel running towards him. Yuuri started to panic again but, immediately after their names were done being pronounced, Wolfram dragged him again. Silence accompanied their short walk to the center of the dance floor while the other attendants of the ball eyed them curiously. It was definitely a rare sight to see the young king and his beautiful fiancé appearing exclusively together at this kind of party. The fact that they were holding hands quite tightly raised the level of marvel the crowd had for them._

_When Wolfram bowed to Yuuri, Yuuri tried to remember what Gunter said about dancing etiquettes. What did he have to do now?! Ah, yes, he remembered. He had to bow as well. And so he did. _

_At that bow, the crowd around them gasped. Wolfram's eyes widened in surprise. Yuuri grimaced inwardly. Now what the hell did he do wrong this time?!_

_The music started nonetheless and Wolfram took Yuuri's hand and stated twirling him around. Yuuri followed his steps and was glad for once that Wolfram was taking the lead. He had absolutely no idea what he had to do in these dances so it was nice that someone else was showing him how._

"_I can't believe you did that," Wolfram said through the perfect smile he was showing for the benefit of the crowd during the dance._

"_Did what?" Yuuri asked confusedly. He wished Wolfram did not have to talk. He was busy enough counting the dance steps!_

"_You bowed to me!" Wolfram replied exasperatedly. Yuuri stepped on Wolfram's toe when he said that and prompted the blonde to reprimand him, "Focus, Yuuri!"_

"_Well, isn't that what I had to do?" Yuuri argued, so sure that he had this rule correctly. "According to Gunter, if your dance partner is male, you have to bow as well and not curtsy because curtsying is done by females only!" _

"_You wimp!"_

"_Stop calling me that!"_

"_You didn't have to bow to me!" Wolfram scolded._

"_Why not?!" Yuuri countered. "You're male, aren't you? Last time I checked, you are!"_

_Wolfram rolled his eyes. "Idiot! You're the king. You don't have to bow to anyone at the dance floor! By bowing to me you're acknowledging that I'm of the same rank as you are!"_

_Yuuri stared long and hard at Wolfram. Finally, he asked, "Well, aren't you?"_

_Wolfram blushed at that but he fervently denied, "No! I'm just your… well, your fiancé. But that doesn't give us equal standing." He sighed and muttered, "Not yet anyway."_

"_What the hell…so when will you be equal in standing with me?" Yuuri asked. As the question poured out of his mouth, Yuuri suddenly realized that the question was stupid. He guessed the answer immediately after he had finished his sentence._

_Wolfram's answer was just as he expected. "When you marry me." The blonde sighed again and grumbled, "Which is not going to happen in this lifetime, I suspect. So the answer is never."_

_At Wolfram's dejected voice and face, Yuuri suddenly felt the insane urge to hug the blonde and tell him that it _was_ going to happen. He did not know when but it _would_ happen…if only to wipe that sad look on Wolfram's face._

_However, the blonde seemed to refuse to be let down by negative thoughts tonight. He lifted his chin up and adopted that haughty tone once again as he said, "Well, it's not like I actually want to marry a bad dancer like you."_

_Yuuri actually smiled. He decided to tease Wolfram, "But what if I learn how to dance properly?"_

"_Hmph! That one is also never going to happen in this lifetime!"_

"_Oh, come on… don't you have faith in your fiancé?"_

"_Frankly? No."_

"_Hey, why not?"_

"_Because you're a wimp! Once a wimp, forever a wimp!"_

"_That's so unfair!"_

_Thus, under the watchful eyes of the spectators, Yuuri and Wolfram continued dancing and arguing and sometimes even occasionally smiling at each other warmly throughout the night. As for Stoffel? He never stood a chance. Wolfram stood by Yuuri's side for the whole night. They danced some more… they talked some more…_

_All night long…_

* * *

The melody of the waltz that had been ringing in his head stopped when he slowly started to open his eyes. There was whiteness all over that was soon taken over by bright light. Then the light faded revealing blurry shapes. The blurry shapes in turn took form… there were people… people who were hurrying from one side to another… there was also noise but no music… this was no party.

"OUCH! THAT HURT! BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU TOUCH!"

Who the hell was shouting?

"OW! THAT HURT!"

Wolfram. It was _Wolfram_. _Wolfram_ was shouting!

"DAMN IT, YOU'RE HURTING ME!"

Wolfram was hurt! He had to be saved!

Yuuri woke up with a start and jolted to a seating position. When he did, three men came rushing towards him. They were all shouting, "Your Majesty! You're awake!"

Yuuri ignored them. He frantically perused the busy place – wherever this was – to find the one person he had wanted to see since months ago…

And finally he found him. He saw a topless Wolfram sitting on a bed across the room. Standing next to Wolfram, hovering by his bed with a damp cloth, was the soldier Dacascos. He was attempting to treat Wolfram's wounds by dabbing it on the cuts and bruises. The blonde, however, was giving the bald headed soldier hell. He could not stop shouting.

Yuuri had to blink several times to make sure that the being in front of him with blonde hair and green eyes was not merely an apparition. Despite his own injuries, he pinched his own arm to make sure that he was not in a dream either. After all that, the blonde did not disappear. Nor did his mind feel hazy like in a dream. It was reality. The reality was that Wolfram was there, in the same place, just right across him.

A medic approached Yuuri and gently coaxed him, "Your Majesty, please lie down. You are hurt and you need proper treatment."

When he heard Yuuri's name being uttered, Dacascos turned to Yuuri and smiled. Gisela's right hand man greeted him, "Hello, Your Majesty! I will be right with you after I finish treating Lord Wolfram!"

Wolfram growled, "Just go away now, baldie!"

At the endearingly vexing scene, Yuuri unconsciously chuckled. He blurted out, "Oh, Wolfram, you're such a baby."

Right at that moment, he felt like he could just hit his head on a brick wall. He had not seen his fiancé for several long weeks and they had not spoken to each other for even more. And yet, his first words to his him came out as a mockery. He felt guilty enough to want to cry and disappear from the face of this world.

Wolfram narrowed his eyes on Yuuri but did not seem to take offense. Perhaps he was too much in pain to take exception to Yuuri's unintentional jibe. He did say, "_I'm_ a baby? Wait until _you_ try one of these cloths on your raw skin. Let's see who will cry then! And–"

Gwendal entered the tent. His presence put an end to whatever it was Wolfram had to say. Everyone else in the tent paused from their hustling and bustling to salute their commander. Gwendal merely nodded his acknowledgement at them before shifting his gaze to his younger brother. Wolfram gazed back at Gwendal. Yuuri threw his gaze back and forth between the two unlikely siblings.

The air was thick with tension as everyone held their breath in anticipation of Gwendal's next words. But they never came. Instead, those who were near enough could see a flicker of emotion in his eyes as he stared at his youngest brother. One would swear it was relief. Another could contend that it was longing. In any case, even if they saw it, perhaps they would not dare to say it: the military chief's eyes were tear-glazed.

After a long while, Gwendal finally tore his gaze away from Wolfram and turned to Yuuri. He asked gruffly, "Are you all right, Your Majesty?"

Surprised at having been addressed while he was in the middle of scrutinizing Gwendal, Yuuri stammered, "I… uh… I'm f-fine! P-perfectly f-fine!"

Gwendal had a distrusting look on his face. Then he called Dacascos, who stepped forward immediately. He ordered him, "Make sure that that gash on His Majesty's left arm is properly treated and healed."

Yuuri glanced down at his left arm and, just as Gwendal indicated, there was a large gash. He had seen wounds like these before but seeing one on his own body gave his head a certain lightheadedness that he knew was _not good_ for his well-being. He gulped and looked back at Gwendal although the older man's terrifying face was not a better sight than his wound.

"Where's Conrad?" Yuuri asked to get his mind off the wound.

Gwendal's scowl intensified considerably. He made a low growling sound on his throat and then answered in a clipped tone, "In the other tent with your brother."

That statement made Yuuri flinch. He gaped and asked, "My brother? He's here?!"

Gwendal shifted his attention back to Wolfram and said, "Apparently so. No doubt he came together with Wolfram."

Wolfram promptly swung his face to the side to show his denial. "Hmph! We didn't come together! He followed me here! _That_ _jerk_!"

Yuuri, Gwendal, Dacascos and everyone around them arched their eyebrows and stared at him in wide-eyed astonishment after that last insult on Shori's character. Yuuri had to shake his head several times before he could produce any response.

"Did you… did you have a fight with Shori?" the king asked.

Wolfram glared at him. "Ask _him_. _He _started it." Then, as if suddenly realizing who he was talking to, he shook his head in exasperation. "And I don't even know why I'm talking to _you_! You are no different from him! Hmph!"

Gwendal and Yuuri exchanged bemused looks. The former gave a small shrug of indifference but the latter could not help but feel intrigued. _Extremely intrigued_. He wondered what had happened between Wolfram and Shori on Earth that could induce Wolfram's wrath like this. He knew it was a long shot for Wolfram and Shori to be fast friends but he did not even know what happened between Shori and Wolfram while they had been together on Earth. For all he knew, on Earth, _anything _could have happened. To prove it, just now, the way Wolfram spoke of Shori just now sounded… somehow… a little like – Yuuri gulped at this thought – _a lover's quarrel_.

_What the hell?! _

Suddenly Yuuri could not handle his curiosity and uneasiness anymore. He needed to find out. He _had to_ talk to Shori _now_. Without thinking twice, Yuuri jumped out of bed, surprising the hell out of everyone, including Wolfram. When Yuuri made his way towards the exit, the medics scrambled to stop him. But the king could be fast if he wanted to. Without too much work, the wounded king slipped through opening of the tent and marched outside to the other tent… wherever that other tent was!

* * *

"You know you screwed up, didn't you?" Yozak pointed out the obvious at his captain.

"Shut up," Conrart growled.

His friend and fellow Ruttenberg survivor decided to be merciless and implacably continued to assault Conrart's judgment. "It was bad enough that you followed _me_ to run after Gunter but during the course of the hour-long battle you left his side twice more and failed to get him to safety. What was that all about, captain? Aren't you usually joined at the hip with the kiddo?"

Shori choked on his drink when he heard Yozak's last sentence. He coughed out the water that accidentally clogged his nose. The sound drew Yozak and Conrart's attention to him.

At the sight of Shori, Yozak smiled. "By the way, Shori-_sama_, you may not have been able to wield a sword but I noticed your Maryoku had become stronger. You finished off a battalion of thugs with your water magic, didn't you? I saw you during the battle. Now, if only you didn't keep gawking at the captain's little brother, you would have finished finishing them off a little sooner than it took you to."

It was Conrart's turn to choke on his drink. He swiveled and glared at Shori. "You were doing _what_?!"

Shori snapped at the accusation. "Don't start with me again, Conrad! I was only looking out for Wolfram! He was fighting all by himself! I was just trying to protect him!"

Conrart somehow hated the sound of that. It was not Shori's job or responsibility to protect Wolfram, damn it, Conrart wanted to scream. It was _his_ right! _His!_ Wolfram was _his_ brother.

"Besides, where were _you_ when your brother collapsed? Did you even know where he was standing?" Shori persisted. Then, somewhat jealously, the dark haired man shot, "Of course you didn't! You were, as always, too busy tending to _my_ brother! So don't blame me for looking out for _yours_!"

Conrart had never felt so livid in his whole entire life. There had been many times when he wanted to break away from his smiling façade and explode in rage but he had always been able to contain his anger. And in all of those times, his wrath had always been directed at the people who wanted to do him, his family, his country and his monarch harm. Never before had he felt _this _upset at someone whom he usually called friend. Now, however, all he could think about was violate Shori for those accusations.

Yozak sensed that they were dangerously close to hitting each other again so he stepped forward to put some kind of barrier intervened between them. He then said placatingly, "Enough already. You two will get into more trouble if you continue to act like this. Just stay calm until Lord Von Voltaire returns, all right?"

"SHORI!"

The king made his grand entrance at their tent, followed by several medics and soldiers who had been tagging along behind him when he escaped from the medical tent. He had circled the whole camp once before someone finally indicated the correct directions to the exact tent that Conrart and Shori were occupying. When he appeared, both Shori and Conrart rose from their seats. Then, brushing past Conrart, Shori hurriedly approached his brother.

"Yuuri! Are you all right?" Shori asked.

"I'm fine!" Yuuri insisted. "Don't worry about me. Hey, I need to talk to you about something. Let's step outside for a while."

Shori took no notice of Yuuri's words. He stared at the terrible gash on Yuuri's arm and turned completely pallid. Seething, he looked at Conrart accusingly and sneered at him, "You did screw up, didn't you?"

"That's not important!" Yuuri impatiently cut in. "I need to talk to you!"

"Later, Yuuri," Shori said rigidly. "You need to get that wound treated first."

"Who cares about the damn would right now!" Yuuri practically shouted.

The shout, however, rendered him unsteady. He started to sway the way Wolfram had earlier and Shori quickly steadied him with his hands. His eyes filled with concern, he firmly held Yuuri's shoulders to support him.

"I care, Yuuri," Shori softly said, his concern very obvious.

Some of that concern must have been properly conveyed to his younger brother because after that Yuuri sighed and acquiesced. "Fine," the king said, "I'll have it treated first."

Shori nodded gladly. "And I'll stay with you."

Soon enough, the medics swarmed the place to do their job. On the meantime, Yozak slipped outside to do more useful things. Dacascos instructed the soldiers to carry Yuuri to a bed that was available in the tent. Shori was having none of it; he wanted to be the one to carry his own brother. Dacascos let him have his way and even thanked him for helping. When that happened, Conrart, now ignored, slipped out as well. He did not want to be there at the moment; seeing Shori and Yuuri together was too unbearable right now.

He wanted to be with his own brother. So, with Shori's words looming at the back of his mind, he went in search for Wolfram. He needed to see Wolfram and he needed to tell him how sorry he was that he had not been there for him. He prayed that Wolfram would not push him away right now and he would give everything that he owned for his younger brother to forgive him… to accept him… to let him stand beside him…

Before he got anywhere near the other medical tent, he suddenly heard a small voice calling out his name.

"Conrart."

The soldier halted in surprise. He turned around. How surprised and, on top of all, relieved he was when he found the face of the one whom he had been missing for many months…

"Wolfram…"

His younger brother, wrapped in a thin ragged blanket that undoubtedly must have been salvaged from the raided supply, was staring at him intently. Conrart was almost too afraid to see how Wolfram was looking at him because there used to be only repugnance in those beautiful green orbs. This time, however, after everything that had happened and was happening, he could not avoid them any longer. Bracing himself, he lifted his eyes to look straight into Wolfram's eyes for the first time in many years.

What he saw there knocked the wind out of him. Wolfram was staring at him sadly, longingly and tearfully. Wolfram looked tired and wounded. Not just physically… but mentally as well. Conrart could not help himself.

He went over to Wolfram and seized his brother in a hug, not caring what Wolfram or anyone else might think. He prepared himself to be pushed away as he had always been but, surprisingly, Wolfram was docile in his arms. He did not even breathe a word of disdain when Conrart suddenly tightened his embrace. It was as if the blonde was relishing Conrart's warmth.

Before long, Conrart felt moisture on his shirt. Then he heard a sob. His heart twisted and turned at the sight of his brother sobbing. At that Conrart did another thing that he had not done in years ever since their childhood, before Wolfram discovered what sort of blood Conrart had running through his veins; he kissed Wolfram's head.

"It's all right, Wolfram, I'm here," Conrart said.

Wolfram then wrenched his head away from Conrart's chest and looked at his brother. Desperately, the blonde said, "Take me away, Conrart. I don't want to be here. Please take me away… I don't want to be here!"

Conrart did not ask questions. He merely nodded and promised, "Yes, Wolfram. I'll take you away. We'll leave. Together."

"Promise?" Wolfram asked, choking on a sob.

"Promise."

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	11. Special Interlude

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou. 

Pairing: (very) brotherly Conrad + Wolfram and Shori + Yuuri

Notes: Another update? Why? I'm giving the readers something fluffy, because starting from the next chapter things will probably be, err, full of angst. Furthermore, I see a busy life ahead of me in the next couple of weeks so I might not have time to update as fast as before. I hope this chapter will fill in the gap until I can update again the next time.

Just so you know, these are _not_ the actual scenes where the younger brothers finally accept their older brothers. This is just filler and meant solely for instant gratification because I know some people like reading this kind of thing. In short, this chapter may not directly contribute to the plot. What you have to do now is enjoy and make a lot of squeeing sounds. Hopefully you'll be able to do that.

* * *

_**After Chapter X **_

**INTERLUDE**

_** Before Chapter XI**_

* * *

_**1: Big Brother's Pillow**_

* * *

This was odd. It was strange, bizarre, peculiar and unusual. This was not him at all. He could not believe he was doing this. And with _him_, of all people. He did not have to do this with _him_. He could think of plenty of other people in his family with whom he could do this sort of thing and with home he _preferred_ doing this sort of thing. His _mother_, for example. Or his _other _brother. 

If only _this brother_ had not shown up in front of him this afternoon… if only _this brother_ had not heard him calling his name in the spur of the moment… if only _this brother_ had stayed inside that tent with the king and the king's brother… he would not have seen him. He certainly would not have longed for him in that instance and therefore he would not have ended up in this place with him, doing _this_ with him …

… and he certainly would not have had to watch him making futile attempts at making a more decent bed for the both of them. There was nothing they could do about it anyway.

Thanks to the rampage earlier, there was no building left in the area that was fit for lodging. Even their king slept outdoors, giving whatever tents available for the injured soldiers who were undergoing treatment to rest. Besides, it was not like he _wasn't_ comfortable in this position…

As if his mind had been read, the older man asked, "Are you comfortable?"

He wanted to shake his head. He wanted to open his mouth to scream "no", followed by "it's none of your business!" He wanted to push this person away like he had done many times before. But, alas, he found that he could do these things no longer. Not when his heart was craving for some attention… some affection… some _real_ love… from someone whom he knew would never betray him, leave his side or abandon him the way other people did to him…

How could he have been so stupid and so blind as to assume that, just because they had different bloods running through their veins, he was different from him? He was not. He had never been different. Not only were they not different, they might have also been closer than he had thought all along. Because if there was no one else left in this world who could understand him, who could feel the pains and the joys that his heart felt, and who could give him exactly what he needed because he understood him so well, it was _this person_.

_This __brother_.

"Wolfram," he called again and repeated his question, "Are you comfortable?"

All he could do now was nod. His nod was nothing but a weak inclination of his head but the message somehow got through. Conrart smiled and patted his younger brother's head affectionately.

"Good," he said, sounding very satisfied. "I made sure I did a proper job prepping up the pillows. I know you can't have a good night's sleep without proper pillows. Since we don't have actual pillows here at all, I hope this substitute is adequate. I'm glad you're comfortable with this substitute pillow."

Wolfram wanted to roll his eyes at that rambling statement about the damn pillows. That sounded horribly unfunny, especially if Conrart had meant that as a joke. Sleep, however, was preventing him from talking as it began to cloud his mind. He was so fatigued that he could not even open his lids all the way up. So he just grunted in response and hoped that the grunt managed to express his meaning somehow: _Conrart, you're a bloody idiot_.

A moment later, he heard Conrart yawn too. The events of the day must have taken its toll on him too, he realized. After that, his brother said, "Well, good night, Wolfram."

Wolfram did not reply immediately, still feeling awkward from the realization of his own feelings and the fact that he did not dislike this as much as he expected. But he figured that it would be rude not to acknowledge Conrart's 'good night' after everything that he had done for Wolfram to ensure the blonde's comfort since several hours ago. So, pushing down the awkwardness from his chest, he finally replied.

"'Night," Wolfram whispered.

There was no response. Instead he heard Conrart's even breathing. At that Wolfram forced his eyelids to open just a bit so he could steal a glance at his brother's serene face. He saw the man already asleep while leaning on the trunk of an old tree in the outdoors. He was glad to know that Conrart had the decency to fall asleep right away after saying goodnight. Although now he found that he did not dislike Conrart, he would still rather drown in the sea than let Conrart know that he was being thoughtful of his older brother's feelings.

And then, just when he decided that he no longer could fight the sleep that had overtaken his senses, he sighed.

He might change his mind tomorrow. He might act like he did not care when morning came. He might shove him away again tomorrow to salvage his pride. He might deny ever doing this with him. He might even hurt his feelings again doing all those things… but tonight, he just had to say it. He _had_ to let him know how he really – and secretly – felt about him.

"Good night… brother."

Moments after Wolfram had closed his eyes, Conrart suddenly – perhaps even unknowingly – produced a smile in his sleep. His hand, which had previously been lying loosely on his side in his slumbering state, reached up to tousle his brother's beautiful gold-colored head and rested there for the rest of the night as Wolfram slept soundly on his lap.

* * *

_**2: Big Brother's Blanket**_

* * *

Try as he might but he could not sleep. Not with his brother rattling his teeth, shivering and whimpering from the cold like that. He had tried to offer him several solutions but the younger boy had said "no, thank you" in a mature, I'm-not-a-kid-anymore-so-don't-patronize-me kind of voice and steadfastly refused to be helped in any way. He wondered whether his kid brother was ever going to accept his help graciously as he had once done when they were both young. 

It was a pity that their brotherly bonding did not extend into the night when things had gone so well between them earlier that afternoon. The kid obeyed him at every instruction to be careful with that wound of his. They also managed to converse a lot during dinner, generally regarding their parents, in a friendly manner that lacked the usual jibes or sneers they usually displayed at home. The whole time, he even got the impression – no… he was _very certain_ that his brother had actually missed him and was actually glad to see him again after all the times they had spent away from each other.

The best part about their reunion was that there was no one else but them in it. They were alone – just the two of them. None of his brother's subordinates hovered and, thanks to the injury, no one tried to drag him to do something or other. He got his brother's undivided attention – which was rare even when they were not here in this world – and, for the first time in several long years – he felt closer to him than ever.

When the time came for them to sleep, however, the kid dropped his 'younger brother' act and tried to become someone whom he was _not_ – not yet, that is – once again. The kid tried to be the adult one in their brotherly relationship, which irked _him_ as the older brother to no end, starting with the blanket issue.

"You could take up Gunter's offer to sleep in the medical tent, you know?" Shori told him when Yuuri insisted that he should sleep outdoors like the other uninjured soldiers.

Yuuri had his reasons: Gisela was sleeping in the medical tent because she was badly injured. Gunter should use the extra space available in Gisela's tent because he was certain that Gisela would want her father to be by her side to look after her. Besides, it would not be proper for him to share quarters with a gentle lady like Gisela. What more, _he_ was engaged and he did not want his fiancé to be angry.

Of course, Shori knew better than to point out that said fiancé was nowhere to be found. Yuuri would not have listened anyway.

And that was that. Yuuri had made up his mind to sleep in the great outdoors.

… and in the cold. Without a blanket. Because the only one blanket they could find, he gave it away to Shori. Because he thought Shori was more deserving. The kid really did have a strange sense of honor.

Not that this was a completely bad idea. If Shori had gone to sleep in one of the few tents that were available, he would not have had the chance to spend more time with Yuuri. Today was definitely an exception. Tomorrow Yuuri was going to be king once again and Shori would have to get out of his way. Tomorrow Yuuri might even reject him even more harshly. So, as long as he could have his kid brother to himself for a while longer, he did not mind sacrificing his own comfort – or his brother's for that matter – and braving the cold.

The clattering sound started again. This time it was more pronounced. Shori told himself to not make a big deal out of this. If Yuuri wanted to be cold, fine. Yuuri was a big boy, Shori told himself, Yuuri could handle it. With determination, Shori shut his eyes tight and tried to sleep.

And then he heard him sneeze. His resolve dissolved into the night air. He had had enough.

Grunting he kicked his blanket and rose to his feet. He went over to Yuuri who was lying down on grass not very far away from him. When he arrived, the three guards assigned to keep a watchful eye on the king's welfare and security stared at him warily. He ignored their suspicious glances and dropped himself to the ground next to his brother.

Yuuri opened his eyes, lifted his head and eyed Shori confusedly. "Sho-Shori, what are you doing?"

"Doing my noble as an older brother," Shori answered flatly.

"What do you– hey! Are you sleeping here?!" Yuuri asked when Shori stretched out beside him.

The older Shibuya brother did not even bother to respond. He merely lied down there and pulled the blanket on _both_ of their bodies.

Realizing what Shori's game was, Yuuri started again, "I told you, I'm not a kid anymore! You don't have to–"

But Shori silenced him by throwing his arm over his brother's body and drawing him close to his chest. Yuuri opened his mouth to protest and refuse Shori's help again but Shori did not budge. With his arm practically pinning Yuuri down, there was little else the Demon King could do. Sighing with resignation, Yuuri shut his mouth.

Some time later the soldiers stopped hearing voices altogether. When they turned around to see how the king and his older brother were faring, they were treated to a rare and extraordinary sight of the young king sleeping comfortably in his big brother's protective arms with the blanket wrapped securely over them. His face appeared boyish under the moonlight and, for the first time in many days, a content smile graced his youthful visage.

Relieved that their king was finally sleeping peacefully, the guards turned their heads away and went back to their duty. With his brother at his side, they figured, there was nothing to worry about the king. They knew; Shori Shibuya was always going to be there for the whole night to protect his brother. That was what big brothers do.

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


	12. Chapter 12: Changes

**IN HIS SHOES**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Kyou Kara Maou.

Pairing: Yuuri/Wolfram

Note (a rather long one, too):

A new chapter, at last! I am _very sorry_ to make you wait for one whole year for this one. But my excuse remains the same as last year's: real life and career are very hectic and I barely have time for anything these days. However, rest assured, I am not abandoning this story and will strive to finish it. In fact, in compensation for having taken so long with the updates, the length of this chapter will be _massive_. But I find that I couldn't have done it another way. Brace yourselves – you're in for a long ride.

There is also the matter of Shori taking over the story and this fic was in danger of shaping up to be a Shori/Wolfram fic instead of the Yuuri/Wolfram that I intended it to be. You cannot imagine how many times I've had to write and rewrite this chapter (and the next 2) for the story to come back to its original plot. I still don't have an ending yet but I do know who is going to end up with who in this story. (By the way, you might also be interested to know that I'm also in the process of writing a separate Shori/Wolfram story that I might post sometime in the near future.)

I won't bore you any longer with my notes and let you get on with the story. But before I end this, I'd like to say thank you so very much for all of those who reviewed, commented and PM-ed me about this fic. My gratitude also goes to the many people who put this story on their alert and favorites list. Million thanks and enjoy the story!

* * *

**Chapter XI: Changes**

_Wolfram is a fearless knight among wimps._

* * *

Wolfram heard laughter from inside the room and for a moment he paused to decipher whose delightful voice it belonged to. A moment later, he found his answer. It had to be Gisela. He decided to stop and enjoy that sound for a little while, for it meant that the danger had passed and she was alive and, most importantly, truly well. Her condition had been grave for a while and the healers had even told Gunter to prepare himself for the probability of losing his daughter. Gunter's grief over Gisela's condition had been unbearable and everyone had tried their best to console him. Luckily, Gisela was strong and Wolfram's closest childhood friend pulled through in the end.

Wolfram did not even want to contemplate how things might have turned out if the healers and Ulrike had not managed to cure Gisela from her life-threatening injuries. Standing here in front of her room, with eyebrows crunched so closely that his handsome face lost its appeal for a moment, he shuddered as his mind briefly considered the what ifs. But he shook himself out of it pretty quickly when he heard the sound of laughter once again. Obviously, Gisela was all right now, so Wolfram quickly recomposed himself, schooling his features into its previously neutral expression and straightening the non-existent creases of his jacket. He glanced downwards to make sure that there was not a single petal out of place in the bouquet of flowers that he was bringing for Gisela and proceeded to knock the door to his friend's room.

"Come in," came the answer from inside.

Wolfram opened the door and stepped in. Gisela was half obscured from his view by the canopies of her bed but she apparently spotted him clearly because she squealed her welcome in excitement. Her companion, the formidable Lady Anissina, did too because right after Gisela's greeting he head Anissina's drawling greeting.

"Hello, Gisela," Wolfram started and then acknowledged Anissina, "Hello, Anissina." He paused and said again, "I heard you're well now so I came to visit."

Gisela beamed. "Why, thank you, Wolfram!" She eyed the flowers and her eyes widened at the sight of them. "You even brought flowers!"

Wolfram thrust the flowers at Gisela's hand and then blushed profusely. Gruffly, the blond knight said, "Well, it's only polite to bring some-something when visiting a sick person, especially if that person is a lady. And you are a lady, aren't you?"

Anissina and Gisela exchanged an amused look before the former burst out laughing in that annoying high-pitched voice of hers. Wolfram shot her a dirty look but Anissina was, as usual, unfazed. She even had the gall to tease him about that.

"Apparently chivalry is not dead!" Anissina proclaimed, "How gallant of you, Wolfram! It's good to see a man with proper manners these days… because we all know that the whole lot of them are brutes! Like your oldest brother, for example! Why, when he visited Gisela, he did not bring anything! Nothing! Not even one of his deformed stuffed animals! Honestly! So, Little Wolfram, you have my vote for Prince Charming of the Year!"

Wolfram gritted his teeth. Although she was not exactly mocking him, he did wonder why Anissina always felt compelled to tease him all the time. Perhaps he had made a mistake coming back to Shin Makoku after all. Perhaps he should have just stayed on Earth where there was no Anissina and her jokes. He should have just stayed there with the Shibuya family… but he quickly stopped his train of thought at the mere memory of _that_ family. Thinking about Shori hurt too much right now. Thinking about Yuuri even more so. Thinking about their parents, who were so kind to him despite the fact that their sons weren't, hurt as well because now he was quite sure he was never going to see them again…

Shaking his head to get rid of unnecessary thoughts, he struggled to keep his temper under control. It would have been a difficult feat, controlling his temper, but the training he had done with Shori Shibuya on Earth had improved him in that department. He was now no longer prone to outbursts, although that did not diminish his desire to roast anyone who pricked his temper. Then again, this new development might have been due to the fact that he had avoided the whole castle ever since they returned from the encampment and that hideous battle. No one had come to seek his company either, although that was probably because he was always brooding these days and that might have discouraged callers, so Wolfram had been able to spend his days back at the castle, recovering from his wounds, in relative silence.

Gisela noticed how agitated Wolfram had become because of Anissina's joke so she decided to intervene. "Thank you for the flowers, Wolfram. Just put them in my nightstand and come sit here next to my bed."

Wolfram nodded and did what he was told. Once he had reached Gisela's bedside, he placed the flowers on the nightstand and sat on an empty chair, clearly put there for visitors, and took a good look at his friend. What he saw broke his heart.

Because of the brutality inflicted on her person by those criminals, she had to have her hair cut. Her previously long locks were only as long as Wolfram's own and that was rather short indeed. Her face had been swollen before but now there were thankfully only about a dozen dried lacerations marring her pretty features. Wolfram felt his throat constrict at the sight of her. She did not deserve this… she did not deserve to have her face ruined like this. Oh, he knew it would heal over time but seeing them there was just too much for him… he had heard of a detailed account of what had happened to Gisela in the battle. How she had been dragged and kicked and punched and… nearly _raped_.

And just that last crime alone was enough to send Wolfram's temper up to flames. _Those bastards!_

Gisela was alarmed. Wolfram's power was furiously radiating from him and was threatening to escalate to a full-fledged outburst of Maryoku that could possibly wreck more damage. Apparently Anissina felt it too. The moment she felt Wolfram's power tingling under her skin, she started to steadily move away from Wolfram. The raw wrath from his powers, stronger than ever before, was surprisingly scary.

"Wolfram, calm down," Gisela ordered in a firm tone that reminded them all of her Sergeant persona.

Wolfram stared fiercely at Gisela and said through gritted teeth. "But your face… they ruined your face… they nearly _raped_ you…"

"I'm fine!" Gisela cut him off quickly, understanding immediately the source of the sensation of wild power radiating from Wolfram, "These cuts will heal. It's not like I haven't had this kind of cuts before. As for those criminals, I'm sure they're being taken care of. Besides, I heard _you_ fought them bravely there."

For once Anissina didn't tease him. She sounded perfectly serious when she said, "And you can't deny it. You _did_ fight bravely. Everyone is surprised, Wolfram. You came late in the battle and yet you slew more villains than the other soldiers did. His Majesty is saying that you deserve an honor! You're practically a hero!"

Wolfram shrugged as if the matter did not concern him. The memory of his bloody homecoming had by now become a blur in his mind and it was all for the better. The less he remembered about the whole incident, the better. He could not bring himself to care that the king had finally realized his worth as a soldier.

"As for Gisela, don't worry about her," Anissina continued, "I'm developing a skin salve that will remove the scars completely, which will be ready in a week. And I can assure you, this one is _not_ a fluke. I had already tested a less potent version of the cream on the other injured soldiers and it worked wonders!"

Wolfram didn't doubt that for a second. He had been present at the medical tent when Anissina's wonder salve had been applied to the cuts and bruises suffered by his fellow soldiers. Everyone in his regiment was miraculously scar-free. If Anissina had come up with a more potent version of the same salve for Gisela, then Gisela would surely regain her good looks once again. With that reassurance, Wolfram calmed down and his power began to stifle. Gisela and Anissina exchanged meaningful glances as this occurred.

"That's good then," Wolfram replied a moment later with a genuine smile to both ladies.

Gisela beamed again. She then asked him softly, "So, how have _you_ been, Wolfram? Are you all right?"

"I'm…" And suddenly Wolfram was at lost for words. Sure, he could just say "I'm fine" but somehow Gisela's tone indicated that she did not want to hear a simple and somewhat untruthful answer like that. It sounded like Gisela was not merely asking about his health. No, Wolfram knew that Gisela was asking about matters of the heart. _His heart_. And Wolfram didn't know what to say about _that_.

It was no secret even for her who had not been living at the castle at the time it happened that Wolfram had mysteriously disappeared with Shori. Surely she had also heard of how his disappearance caused a great uproar in the castle. The fact that he reappeared in the middle of a bloody battle in what used to be her camp was certainly a point of interest for her. Gisela knew this and, having been Wolfram's friend since they were little, she knew that Wolfram must not be as well as he wanted to be. She wanted to know how he truly felt so that she might be able to help him.

Wolfram raised his eyes to meet her gaze while contemplating her question and when their gazes locked he was suddenly overcome with the most overwhelming urge to spill everything to Gisela. He _really_ wanted to talk to a friend about his predicaments but… alas, he was afraid of what Anissina would say if she heard his story.

Fortunately, Anissina was a very smart woman. She was more than capable of picking up hints through body language and facial expressions. She only needed to listen to Gisela's tone and see the look on Wolfram's face to realize that her two young friends needed to be left alone so they could talk about private matters. Anissina was obnoxious and she could be downright brazen when she wanted to but not this time. She respected that Gisela and Wolfram needed privacy. So she took her leave.

"I'm sure the two of you have a lot of catching up to do," Anissina said, standing up. She was already strolling toward the exit as she said, "I'm due in for a meeting with Gwendal and the others in a few moments so I'll leave you here to talk. I'm sure you're expected in the meeting as well, Wolfram, but don't worry, I'll let them know that you're visiting Gisela. We'll let you know of the meeting results! Bye, my little darlings… see you later!"

Before Wolfram or Gisela could answer, Anissina was already out of the door, waving her hand like mad and then closing the door with a quiet click. They exchanged amusedly exasperated looks before laughing quietly at her antics. Anissina's footsteps faded away behind the thin walls of this ancient castle. When they could not hear them any longer they turned to each other once again to pick up where they left off.

"So," Gisela started again, "I suspect you have many things to tell me about."

Wolfram nodded slowly and tentatively. "So many things have happened…"

Gisela patted the empty space on the edge of her bed, beckoning Wolfram to sit down there. Wolfram obliged and sat down. With her free hand that was not holding the flowers Wolfram had given her, she reached to touch his hand and squeezed it tight for support.

"Tell me everything, Wolfram," Gisela said.

And so Wolfram did. He told Gisela everything, poured everything out and held nothing back.

* * *

Further investigations of the Western Border incident revealed that the ambush on the Shin Makoku public healthcare establishment in the area had been organized by a formerly elusive criminal organization that had been a thorn in the side of the kingdom's justice since the end of the 26th Demon Queen's reign. This particularly nasty and cruel band of criminals had been rampaging villages and even towns in the Southern and Eastern Borders in the past several years. According to official case records by the local judicial offices in the area, these criminals were nomads. They had been known to never stay in one area more than a few weeks and recruit new members as they trudged ahead to plunder various establishments. They carried their loot with them as they went along and, by the time border patrollers reached their secret lairs, the only thing that they could find was dust in those abandoned hideouts.

The attack on the Western Borders was the fifth offense that this gang committed and also their largest scale operation thus far because it appeared that they sent every single bandit in their so-called organization for the offense. The investigators were amazed to discover that these bandits had never before attacked an establishment owned by the kingdom – their other victims had been civilian-owned establishment – because the way they attacked the camp was so vicious that one would think they had it in for the kingdom and official government. Why they chose to start attacking a military camp now was still a mystery but at least the investigators were able to confirm that nearly the entire number of members of this organization had been suppressed at this particular confrontation with the royal army. In other words, this particular attack seemed to have been designed as their ultimate coup.

The total number of casualties was 106 on their side, while 83 deceased and 23 injured. There were deserters but the number was yet unknown. Previous records showed that there were approximately 150 members in the organization so it was predicted that around 50 convicts were still out there, on the run. They might still pose severe threats to the public and government officials alike so patrols in each region of Shin Makoku, both border regions and the Ten Aristocrats territories, had been increased to prevent future confrontations.

Those were still alive among the casualties were under healer's treatments in prison but would be tried as soon as they were healed. All of them faced heavy sentences as consequences of their destructive offences. Among others, they would be tried for severely injuring one high-ranking official, namely Lady Gisela Von Kleist, and directly attacking King Yuuri Shibuya himself.

Gwendal listened to these reports attentively with Yuuri, Conrart, Gunter, Anissina and even Murata and Shori present in his office. The head investigator, Gregory, who was a lieutenant in Gwendal's regiment, had been working to investigate the case and compose this report ever since the king's return to the Blood Pledge castle from the Western Borders, which Gwendal organized after Geigenhuber had arrived to help Yozak secure the area. This morning, he and his comrades finally stepped up to present the finished report.

"What of the citizens of that town in the Western Borders?" asked Yuuri question after Gregory had reached the end of his presentation.

"The ones who survived the ordeal have begun rebuilding the town," Gregory answered, "A neighboring town is hosting the citizens who lost their homes because of the rampage so the citizens will have temporary shelter during reconstruction. We estimate that the reconstructions will take about a month to finish, during which time our troops will be stationed there to assist and accelerate the process."

"We should consider placing a commander there to lead the restoration of the town and also install him as head of security," Gunter suggested to Gwendal.

Gwendal nodded. "That is very reasonable. We should look into the military records and choose among the high commanders to be placed there. However, seeing as he had already done a good job in the investigations, I am inclined to appoint Gregory."

"Ah, yes, about that, I think actually…" Gregory interjected suddenly and rather nervously. Everyone turned to him with interest.

Gregory gulped at the attention he was receiving from his superiors and wondered if he should still continue. Yuuri noted his discomfort and kindly asked the lieutenant what he meant with his words. Gregory still shifted rather nervously but the question had been asked. He had no choice but to answer lest he was considered rude by the king and

"Someone applied for that job to me, Your Majesty," Gregory finally answered, much to everyone's srurpsie. "Actually, what he said was that he would like to take over the job of supervising the troops there right now from Yozak and Geigenhuber. He was quite adamant in his request, Your Majesty, and but I told him that I would have to discuss the matter with Lord Von Voltaire first. However, if I may be frank, I am quite inclined to recommend him as well. He is a high-ranking commander who has shown great aptitude in combat and I wish to follow his lead."

There was a look of solemnity and utter respect in Gregory's face that everyone wondered who this commander was and how he managed to impress Gregory, who was himself a tough and accomplished warrior with impeccable leadership skills, so that he would even follow this commander's lead.

Conrart raised his eyebrows and asked, "And who might that be?"

At this, Gregory exchanged a certain look with his comrades, the fellow investigators, who nodded reassuringly. Having received their reassurance, he dared himself to answer, "Lord Von Bielefeld."

Everyone gaped at the statement, the shock clear on their faces. And then Gwendal's face turned sour. Gregory regretted his decision to reveal Lord Von Bielefeld's request immediately. It was perhaps tactless because he should have known better that the young knight's brothers would overreact, especially knowing that he might not have fully recovered yet from his post-battle injuries. No doubt Gwendal would reject the recommendation and tell him to find someone else to take over from Yozak and Geigenhuber. Which was a pity, Gregory said internally, because _Wolfram_, as Gregory had come to know the knight, would have been perfect. He had been so helpful during the investigation, too.

"Are you serious? Little Lord Brat himself asked to go?" Anissina spoke up. Her tone was a mixture of incredulity and astonishment.

One of Gregory's companions, the blue-uniformed soldier named Sebastian who had alerted Yuuri and Conrart of the trouble brewing in the Western Borders that afternoon in the garden when they were about to witness Greta and Anissina's invention, stepped forward. He gave his confirmation to support Gregory's statement. Sebastian was Wolfram's second-in-command in his regiment and he was known to be one of the few people Wolfram called friends. It could not have been a lie if Sebastian confirmed this.

"Lord Wolfram has even instructed me to organize our regiment's preparation for departure to the Western Borders," Sebastian said, glancing around the room. "Which might explain his absence in this meeting."

"Actually he's visiting Gisela right now," Anissina spoke up.

"Then he is probably taking a break from the preparations. Last I saw him, he was briefing the cavalry," Sebastian muttered, more to himself than to the room at large but his words had been heard all over nonetheless.

"He can't go!" Yuuri blurted, much to the surprise of all, "He is not fully recovered yet! Gwendal, you better not to authorize him to leave! He still needs to rest!"

The dark look on Gwendal's face told Yuuri that he intended to do just that. Anissina, however, countered, "He looked pretty healthy when he came to see Gisela!"

"We don't know that yet," Gwendal growled, "We haven't actually _seen_ him since we returned to the castle."

"Then perhaps it is _you_ who should have made more of an effort to see him," Anissina retorted. "But no matter! Conrart must be able to vouch for Wolfram's health conditions. Didn't you stay with him the whole time, Conrart? Tell us, don't you think he is fit enough to go on this mission?"

Shori stared at Anissina in awe, wondering what inspired the fiery redhead to inspire her defense of Wolfram. The last time he had seen them together in one room, Wolfram had been less than friendly and Anissina had been teasing him mercilessly. Everyone else seemed to harbor the same sentiment. They were all staring incredulously at Anissina, no doubt questioning this change in her and Wolfram's dynamics. Conrart was uneasy, Gwendal and Gunter seemed to be in shock, the investigators were wary but, Shori noted, Yuuri was stricken. Something was flashing in his younger brother's eyes… something Shori had never seen there before…

"Well, I didn't stay with him the whole time," Conrart started. Now everyone shifted their focus to him and Conrart sighed. "I check on him from time to time but only in the mornings. He goes about his own business during the day and I don't see him until the next morning. Not that I didn't want to stay with him the whole day but I assumed that he was undergoing treatment with the healers at that time and I didn't want to disturb…"

"He wasn't always _just_ undergoing treatment," Gregory spoke up once again. Conrart swiveled toward him with a questioning look. Gregory squared his shoulders and decided to make another revelation. "He wasn't always with the healers during the day. He was helping us with the investigation."

Jaws dropped. Gregory continued, "Lord Von Bielefeld is our main source for this investigation. His regiment had been in charge of border patrols in numerous occasions. More often than not, he even went to patrol the borders himself. He is very knowledgeable about border security. It was his reports and notes that we referred to when we were investigating this criminal organization. They were extremely helpful and helped us reach our conclusions."

No one had anything to say to that. Everyone, including Anissina, seemed to be astonished just by the fact that Wolfram had managed to contribute significantly to the investigations. Shori felt a burst of pride in his heart knowing all this. He was still not on speaking terms with Wolfram and he knew Wolfram was still angry with him but he could not help but feel proud that Wolfram managed to show his intelligence and capacity. He suddenly caught Murata's eyes gazing intently on him. Murata's gaze was meaningful, as if conveying to Shori that he was also feeling the same way, that he was proud of Wolfram. He gave the boy whom they called the Great Sage in this world a nod and received a smile in return.

"All the more reason to send him there, then!" Anissina proclaimed. "Don't you think so, Conrart?"

Cornered once again, Conrart coughed a little. Gwendal was glaring at the both of them while Anissina smirked triumphantly.

"If his health is permitting, I would say that it's a good idea to install him as head of security during the construction period in the Western Borders," Conrart finally said, silently adding, _and I will go with him to protect him if need be_.

"Absurd," was Gwendal's response. "He's probably not well at all. He's an expert at hiding his true feelings."

Shori considered that statement ironic. Wolfram had always been honest and upfront, at least with him. Yuuri, however, was with Gwendal. His younger brother the king rose from his seat and declared, "Wolfram is not to be sent anywhere. His place is here in the castle."

"Why is that, Your Majesty?" Anissina questioned.

"Because I say so," Yuuri answered firmly.

"Excuse me, Your Majesty, but that is extremely arrogant of you to assume that you have a say in anything that Wolfram does," Anissina countered.

"He is engaged to _me_! I have power over him as his king _and_ his fiancé. And I say he is not to leave the castle," Yuuri said angrily.

"Ha! And you think, just because you're his king and his fiancé, he won't fight you for this?" Anissina challenged, smirking.

"That's quite enough, Anissina!" Gunter reprimanded.

Anissina ignored the long-haired advisor to the king and laughed gleefully instead. The sound of her laughter was irritating but at least without malice. She turned to singing now, "Oh, he will fight you for this. He will fight you so hard that you will burn, Your Majesty."

The silence that followed her cackling was deafening. Tension was so thick now that a knife could gut it without a problem. Gregory, Sebastian and the investigators were nervous as hell; they feared their safety being in the same room as these bickering royalties. Luckily for them, Murata put his foot in just in time.

"Everyone, let's calm down, shall we?" spoke Murata loudly. The soldiers let go of the breath they had been holding. He smiled sympathetically at them. Then he started on Yuuri and his subordinates, "Shibuya, you are being an arrogant wimp. Lady Anissina, provoking people is not a good hobby. Lord Weller, you don't have to please _everyone_ all the time. Lord Von Voltaire, you are going to get wrinkles. Lord Von Kleist, you're drooling; close your jaws. Shori, _some help would be nice_."

Surprised at being addressed, Shori nonetheless knew what Murata was asking. So he joined the cause. "Why don't we call him here? It's about time he's included in this meeting instead of just being talked about as if he were someone not part of the family."

The last part of his sentence was uttered with a glance towards Conrart and Gwendal, both of whom returned his look in a strange way. He ignored them and focused on his brother Murata instead. It was probably safer that way. To his surprise, however, Yuuri did not look happy either. Shori wondered what was going on in his little brother's head now.

Anissina didn't miss a beat. She turned to Sebastian and ordered, "Fetch Wolfram. You will find him in Gisela's room. Try to not to disturb them but if you must do so in order to fetch him here, do it gently. Who knows what those two might be into right now? Young people these days…"

There. Another flicker in Yuuri's eyes of something that Shori had never seen in him before. Was it…

"Get him," Yuuri commanded, his voice fierce and low, "Get him here _right now_."

… _jealousy_?

* * *

Sebastian's commander was still sitting in Gisela's room, right beside her on her bed, when he came to summon him. The lieutenant knocked as softly as he could and tried very hard not to make any sound when he opened the door to Lady Gisela's room. Like all the soldiers in the army, he had seen firsthand of how bad the lady's condition was after the battle and he was terribly worried that she wouldn't be able to make it. Judging by the scowl on his commander's face as he stared down at him haughtily for daring to interrupt the tranquility of Lady Gisela's rest, Sebastian knew that Lord Von Bielefeld was just as worried, if not more. Concern etched every line in the young lord's handsome face and Sebastian's heart clenched at the sight of it.

"What do you want?" Wolfram growled his question low.

Sebastian would have flinched but he understood why it was necessary for him to speak like that; Lady Gisela was sleeping. So Sebastien stated his reason for coming as quietly as possible in the tranquil room. Wolfram's reaction to his statement was a curious and nervous stare. Sebastian dared himself to suggest that they make haste for the meeting. Much to his surprise, Wolfram nodded in agreement.

Wolfram rose slowly from the bed as to not disturb her sleep. Sebastian watched as he gently straightened her folded arm and laid her hand on the mattress as he let go of her fingers from his long, slender ones. They had been holding hands all this time. When Wolfram bent down to kiss Gisela on the forehead, Sebastian averted his eyes and resisted the urge to blush. The scene was strangely intimate and he felt very much like an intruder.

Fortunately Wolfram didn't linger. Once he had said his silent goodbye to Gisela for the time being, he practically marched right outside the door. Sebastian had to do a small run to keep up with him. That was when Sebastian registered that there his commander's expression had changed. Lord Von Bielefeld looked fierce, just like when he was about to prepare for a battle or other equally arduous tasks. It was the very look that had won him many of his soldiers' loyalties, Sebastian's included. It was the look that usually meant that he was going to fight with his life to protect the kingdom and the people he loved. Sebastian gulped. All of a sudden, he felt sorry for the lord's brothers.

* * *

Wolfram was not amused. He had known who would be in this meeting but now that he had seen the people he decided that this meeting was _utterly abominable_. How could it be anything else but utter abomination when it consisted of his least favorite persons from _both_ worlds?

First, there was that wimp of a king… then there was that wimp of a king's equally wimpy brother… the one who somehow vexed him more than the wimpy king himself at the moment. Wimps aside, there was that smug sage Murata, whom Wolfram had not even realized was even here in Shin Makoku. How _did _he get here anyway? He only remembered shoving Murata aside until he fell into the lake but did not remember Murata showing up at the battle with him and Shori. Then again, it wasn't like he particularly wanted to know. The Shibuya brothers and everything and everyone associated with them did not deserve a place in his mind.

To make things worse, there were the two nutcases, Anissina and Gunter. As if their presence was not offensive enough in his book, those two were actually glaring menacingly at each other on either side of the wimpy king and the annoyingly smug sage. Take your drama elsewhere, Wolfram wanted to say.

As for his brothers… Wolfram was disheartened to see that Gwendal was scowling. That never boded well for anyone, especially for Wolfram, when Gwendal did that thing with his face. Conrart, on the other hand, was looking at him with concern. Wolfram frowned at that. They might have patched things up between them a little bit but Wolfram sincerely hoped that Conrart wasn't going to be all brotherly mushy with him right now. Not in front of the soldiers in the room.

Apparently all of the members of the investigation team were here; Gregory and Olivier from Gwendal's regiment, Philip and Jules from Conrart's and Rolfe, along with Sebastian, from Wolfram's own. The five soldiers were the first to acknowledge Wolfram's appearance. They all saluted him and he returned the salute. There was actually no need to be so formal between them. After all, they had been working closely together in the past several days during the investigation. But Wolfram understood the need for formalities as they were in the presence of other, higher-ranking commanders in the room. Nonetheless, Wolfram was glad for their presence here. If any, their presence could quell any tension that was sure to occur between him and the other occupants of the room.

"Glad you could join us, Wolfram," Murata greeted, "Why don't you take a seat?"

"Thank you but I would rather stand," Wolfram said stiffly. He then deliberately took his place next to Gregory, who stepped aside to make more room for him. Murata didn't ague and merely shrugged before addressing him again.

"How are you, Wolfram? Well?" Murata asked.

"As you can see, I am in perfect health," Wolfram answered.

Murata turned to the others with a meaningful look that made Wolfram feel suddenly apprehensive. As Wolfram was beginning to question the real purpose of this meeting and the reason for being summoned, Murata continued, "We have finished hearing Gregory and his team's reports. The result of the investigation is quite comprehensive and very informative. And we were told that you were their source."

Wolfram blinked. _Source_? _Ah, my notes_…

"Yes," Wolfram confirmed, failing to keep the pride from spilling forth in his voice. His notes _did_ help Gregory's investigation. They had been painstakingly compiled by him and members of his regiment during the many years he had spent patrolling the borders so he was damned well going to take credit for his and his men's efforts.

"I spent many years patrolling the borders and kept notes and filed reports after each patrol. This is nothing new. Every commander in the military does this. I happen to patrol the Western Border more often than the others," Wolfram elaborated.

"A job well done, in any case," Murata complimented.

Wolfram slightly inclined his head. "Thank you, Your Excellency."

Murata beamed and the bespectacled boy carried on, "And Gregory has told me that you were planning to go back to the camp to supervise the restoration and reconstruction of the village that was destroyed during the attack. Why is that?"

Wolfram was surprised at the question. Next to him, Gregory fidgeted nervously and that was how Wolfram knew who had told Gwendal about the proposal. The reason for Gwendal's fearsome scowl was clear now.

Wolfram sighed. He had not expected his brother to know about this particular request of his yet. He had planned to put the request to Gwendal alone, using a tactful persuasion technique because he knew that his brother would _never_ allow him to go. Not at first anyway.

Murata was still staring at him expectantly. His gaze was all-knowing and yet so deceivingly innocuous. Wolfram knew Murata must have guessed the motivation behind his request. He was the Great Sage, after all. He must have known that Wolfram requested to be sent to the border for the same reason he avoided joining this meeting in the first place. It was because he wanted to avoid a confrontation, or even a conversation, with the people who were sitting on the other side of the long conference table. The king and the king's brother. He wanted to get away from them. In fact, he wanted to get away from the whole world, if possible.

But he couldn't exactly say that in front of these people, could he? Angry, Wolfram was. Discourteous, he was not. And to say that he was using 'kingdom security' as a way of escaping his troubles would earn him scorn from his subordinates. So he said the next thing closest to the truth.

"I have experience patrolling the borders. The notes that were used in the investigation are mine. Rather than sending someone new to become head of security, I think it's best if someone experienced on the matter be the one handling all the security issues in the area. After all, I already know what to expect."

And then, before he could help himself, he blurted out, "I also feel responsible for not being here to prevent the attack. If I had been on patrol at that time, I would have been able to discover the threat much earlier. Unfortunately, I had been busy giving help to… an acquaintance in another world, in His Majesty King Yuuri's world. It's something that I have always regretted doing."

Two things happened after that. Wolfram saw Shori flinch at the implication that it was Shori's fault that the attack happened because he had been the one who whisked Wolfram away from the kingdom. The blond took great satisfaction in seeing the famous older Shibuya's composure crumble, even just a little, at the veiled accusation. But the more interesting reaction would have to be Yuuri's.

Yuuri paled considerably after Wolfram had ended his sentence. Wolfram noticed Yuuri's knuckles turning white from gripping the arm of his royal chair too hard. If Wolfram wasn't mistaken, he also thought that there was anger – absolute fury – blazing in those dark eyes. Wolfram wondered which part of his words had triggered the reaction from the king and arrived to the conclusion that it was probably the accusation he had made of Shori's action that angered the king. Apparently, Yuuri was more loyal to his brother than Wolfram had thought.

_Which is just as well. Wimps, the both of them._

"It wasn't your fault," Murata spoke up once more, cutting through the tension that was steadily rising once again in the chamber, "You didn't do anything wrong. Well, I suppose it doesn't matter what your reasons are, Lord Von Bielefeld. If you're set on going to the village, I suppose we should let you."

"Request denied," Gwendal intervened. To his younger brother, he testily said, "Your physical condition is questionable. Your health, or lack thereof, might pose new problems instead of solving the old ones."

"I beg to differ," Wolfram countered hotly. A part of him was shocked at himself for daring to raise his voice to Gwendal but another part of him was tired of being mollycoddled by his older brothers.

"My condition has been cleared of all threats by the healers. I can give you proof, written statements from various healers, _right now_. My troops have already made preparations. I helped them in making the preparations. I have been doing so in the past week. If I were still sick, I wouldn't have been able to do it. But the fact is, I could. And I have. So please, _Lord Von Voltaire_, if you have a better reason to detain me here, let's hear it because, frankly, that thing about my health is a ridiculous excuse!"

"Gwendal, if I may?" Shori suddenly cut in. Wolfram's head swiveled to glare at him. How dare he cut in? This was _his _argument, _his_ battle. That older Shibuya was trying to steal the show!

"What?" Gwendal barked at the older Shibuya brother.

"Wolfram has become a lot stronger than he had been before he left Shin Makoku with me. He trained with me on Earth, to help me improve my Maryoku. He was my sparing partner, so to speak. And Wolfram managed to use his Maryoku on Earth."

Gasps were heard around the room. No one had heard about this since Wolfram, Shori and Murata reappeared in Shin Makoku. Yuuri was blinking in disbelief. Gwendal was shocked. Conrart, on the other hand, was smiling. Anissina was astonished and clearly impressed. So was Gunter; the almighty mentor to the king even seemed to emanate grudging respect for Wolfram after he had picked up his jaws from the floor. The soldiers were just plain awed. Under normal circumstances, Wolfram would have felt proud yet again but he just couldn't feel it right now.

"So that's what you've been doing! That explains that display of raw power in Gisela's room!" Anissina exclaimed. A moment later she excitedly began to ramble, "Excellent! I can now ask you to help me with my experiments! I have this new machine that I need to test and you can–"

Shori cleared his throat loud and clear to stop Anissina from spouting further scientific nonsense.

"As I was saying, Wolfram's power has increased," Shori continued from where he left off, "If that helps, I think he would be fine at the Western Border."

"And surely, he won't be alone," Murata added. "I'm sure he will receive assistance from Geigenhuber. He can be Wolfram's deputy of security."

"I second that, actually," Conrart spoke for the first time since Wolfram had entered the room.

Gwendal turned to his middle brother and gave him a look that subtly said, _Not you too, Conrart?_

"I believe in Wolfram's capabilities. And if the reports from the healers show nothing wrong with his health, it would be foolish for us not to grant his request. He did _volunteer_. Might I remind you, Gwendal, we have a responsibility to finish the reconstruction _as soon as possible_. His troops are prepared. If we appoint someone else – even me, for example – we will unnecessarily lose precious time! How will we explain that to the people?"

Silence reigned after Conrart finished. Gwendal seemed to fall into deep thought while Conrart turned to Wolfram and locked his eyes with him. When the brunet sent him a small smile, Wolfram nodded stiffly in gratitude. His relationship with Conrart had just evolved once again. He might not be ready to be affectionate with his half-brother in public, even after the tender moment they had shared in the camp a couple of weeks ago, but he was undoubtedly grateful for Conrart's trust and confidence in him. Now, if only Gwendal would just approve…

"We will adjourn this meeting until tomorrow morning," Gwendal decided at long last. He rose from his seat at the long table. "Everything will be decided then. You are all dismissed."

Turning to Yuuri, Gwendal tersely said, "Your Majesty, I take my leave."

"Sure," Yuuri replied absently.

That answer was good enough for Gwendal. He turned around to leave. The door slightly banged when he closed it upon his exit. Gunter followed and so did the soldiers.

Anissina made to leave as well but before she went to the door she approached Wolfram and smiled at the blond Mazoku. Wolram eyed her warily as she gave him an appraising look. The moment was broken when Anissina brought her hand up to pat Wolfram on the shoulder.

"Good job, Little Lord Brat," Anissina drawled.

Without giving Wolfram a chance to reply, she filed through the door and disappeared from Wolfram's presence. Wolfram let out the breath he didn't even know he was holding. He let his composure break for a moment until he suddenly remembered he still had company. His head snapped up and realized that Yuuri, Shori, Murata and Conrart were still there with him and they were staring at him.

It was too much for him.

Very quickly, Wolfram lowered his gaze and muttered his valediction. "Excuse me, Your Majesty, Your Eminence, Lord Weller, Shibuya-san."

He practically ran to the door.

"Wait! Wolfram!" Yuuri called out all of a sudden.

Wolfram halted, stiffening until his whole body was rigid, with his hand on the door handle. It was odd to hear him being addressed by the king. It seemed like ages ago since he had talked to His Majesty. But he found that he didn't want to be addressed by Yuuri Shibuya. It hurt… it hurt too much to talk to him, to listen to him or even just look at him. Because all he could remember was how he had been abandoned…

"Wolfram, we need to talk," Yuuri said, his tone urgent, before Wolfram could finish forming a reply.

"I don't have time," Wolfram finally responded through gritted teeth.

"Just for 5 minutes. Please," Yuuri begged.

"No."

"Please?"

_No, Wolfram. He has nothing to say to you. You have nothing to say to him. Just leave._

"Please?" Yuuri repeated once again, his voice becoming more and more desperate by the minute.

_He will only hurt you again if you let him speak to you. He has hurt you many times before. He hurt you by ignoring you. After all the things you had done for him, he ignored you. He doesn't want you. So you don't have to listen to him. Just walk away._

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I have duties to attend to. Perhaps we can speak another time," Wolfram replied swiftly. And before Yuuri could say anything else, Wolfram walked out of the room and did not look back.

* * *

_**TO BE CONTINUED**_


End file.
